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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

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CNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



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PEACH CULTURE. 



BY 

JAMES ALEXANDER FULTON. 

DOVER, DEL. 



ILLUSTRATED. 



NEW, REVISED, AND ENLARGED EDITION. 






1 





NEW YORK: 

OEANGE JUDD COMPANY, 

751 BROADWAY. 
1882. 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1882, by 

ORANGE JUDD & CO., 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern 
Uistrictol JNew Vorl: 



^5 



'"^^^ 



A\ 



PREFACE TO THE NEW EDITION 



In an occupation so progressive as Peach Culture, a 
decade shows many changes. In preparing a new edition 
of this work it is found that, what was true as regards 
yarieties, at the time of its publication, must, in order to 
give their present status, be essentially modified. In- 
deed, the Chapter on Varieties has been almost entirely 
re-written, old kinds bemg omitted and newer ones 
brought into prominence. Minor corrections have been 
made all through the work, while some matters of interest 
to peach-growers are more appropriately given in the 
present preface. 

At the time when the first edition was published, the 
shipment of fruit from California had just commenced ; 
it was then suggested that, while the less perishable 
fruits, such as grapes, pears, etc., might be sent from 
that State by rail, the more delicate peach could not be 
transported. The peach is now successfully shipped 
from San Francisco to New York, but the cost of trans- 
portation is too great to allow it to become a profitable 
business. The facilities afforded by the Post Office 
Department in the cheap and rapid transmission of 
plants, cuttings, etc. , enable the peach-grower to procure 
buds from a distance at a low rate of postage, and for 
packages of buds the sending by mail is the preferable 
means of transportation. 

During the years that have passed since the first ap- 
pearance of this work, peach-growers have suffered 
greatly from the severity of the winters, notably in 1880- 
81, which was the coldest ever recorded in Delaware. 
During that season the thermometer marked as low as 
18° below zero, and not a single orchard in the State but 
3 



PEACH CULTUEE. 



suffered more or less. Not only the fruit buds, but, in 
some localities, even the trees themselves were killed. 
The few exceptions to the total destruction of the fruit 
were along the margins of bodies of water, and were due 
to their ameliorating influence. In the season following 
this winter, orchards of ten thousand trees did not pro- 
duce a single basket of peaches. On the eastern shore of 
Chesapeake Bay, in Maryland, in localities nearly sur- 
rounded by water, some orchards had a full crop of fruit. 
This fact supports the view, expressed in the first edition, 
that, other things being equal, the best location for a 
peach orchard is the eastern side of a large body of water. 

The great increase of the peach trade is shown by the 
fact that the shipment from the Peninsula in 1870 was 
stated at 2,500,000 baskets. In the abundant year of 
1875 the shipment reached over 4,000,000 baskets, and 
it is estimated that as many, or moi-e, were left on the 
trees or under them. 

Among the inventions to facilitate the operations of 
the peach-groAver that have appeared since the first edi- 
tion are '^ Peach Cullers." One of these will do the 
work of five or six hands ; and as they do it as well, or 
better, they have, in large orchards, superseded culling by 
hand. 

In the first edition, we congratulated ourselves upon the 
absence of the Curculio from the Peninsula. This insect, 
which had inflicted so much damage elsewhere, had not 
then appeared in our orchards. This exemption no 
longer exists, as the insect has, in some cases, ah-eady 
done considerable injury. With an abundant crop, the 
damage is of little consequence, but its attacks are to be 
dreaded when the amount of friut is small. No more 
effective remedies have been suggested than those given 
in the body of the work. 

April, 1882. 



PREFACE. 



Within the last few years, fruit culture, in all its varie- 
ties, has greatly increased in this country ; so that, to-day, 
it is one of the leading interests. Fruit growers' associa- 
tions have been formed, and many periodicals established, 
to advocate and advance their interests. Their usefulness 
has been undoubted, and their success very encouraging. 

Amongst the fruits, the Peachy if not the most, is one 
of the most important of all. It is so easily raised, comes 
into bearing so soon, and is so delicious, as well as beau- 
tiful, it is impossible that it should not be a favorite. 

The consequence is that, in the sections specially con- 
ducive to its cultivation, almost every farm has an orchard, 
and some farms are but one continuous orchard ; and 
sometimes farm after farm is devoted to peaches. Within 
the circle of our own knowledge, the quantity of land 
planted in peaches, by individual planters, varies from 
five acres to six hundred. Some planters have set as 
many as twenty thousand trees in a single season. Or- 
chards of twenty, thirty, and fifty acres are not at all in- 
frequent. 

Living in the very center of the peach-growing district ; 
sharing the common interest felt in the subject ; deeply 
impressed with its importance to the individual planters 
themselves, and also to the community at large ; and be- 
lieving that we could do a lasting benefit to both, have 
induced us to prepare, and now ofi'er to the public, the 
following little treatise on peach culture. Our aim has 
been, 

5 



b PEACH CULTURE. 

1. To give plain, simple and specific directions for 
rearing the trees ; for planting and cultivating an orchard ; 
for gathering and marketing the fruit, with some data 
as to its profitableness as a distinct branch of agriculture. 

2. To point out, clearly and distinctly, the impositions 
practiced by railroad companies and consignees upon 
planters, and the means of redress. 

3. To indicate and briefly describe the varieties that 
pay, and the way to enable young planters, as well as old 
ones, planting new orcliards, to select the most profit- 
able kinds, and thus benefit the whole community by in- 
creasing the productiveness of our farms, and the profits 
of our planters. 

Our efibrt has been to make it a hand-book and guide 
to every planter, to be used as a student uses his diction- 
ary in the acquisition of a language. 



TO 
HIS EXCELLENCY 

GOVEENOK GOVE SAULSBUKY, 

MY ESTEEMED 

FRIEND AND NEIGHBOR, 

THIS LITTLE VOLUME IS 

RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED 

BY 

TheAuthor. 



CONTENTS. 



-«o*- 



Introduction Page 9 

CHAPTER I. 
Site of Nursery — — 29 

CHAPTER II. 
Seed '^1 

CHAPTER III. 
Seed-Bed 36 

CHAPTER IV. 
Preparation of Ground for Nursery — 37 

CHAPTER V. 
Planting the Seed 40 

CHAPTER VI. 
Nursery Cultivation 42 

CHAPTER VII. 
Buds 44 

CHAPTER Vni. 
Budding 48 

CHAPTER IX. 
Cultivation of Buds 56 

CHAPTER X. 
Taking Up and Sending to Market 62 

CHAPTER XI. 

Selecting a Site for an Orchard 68 

CHAPTER Xn. 
Planting an Orchard '5^2 

CHAPTER Xni. 
Orchard Cultivation "^8 

7 



PEACH CULTURE. 
CHAPTER XIV. 



Coming In. 



Baskkts and Crates. 
Transportation 



Consignees . 
Ladders, . . . 



CHAPTER XV. 

CHAPTER XVI. 
CHAPTER XVII. 
CHAPTER XVni 



CHAPTER XIX. 



Shipping. 



CHAPTER XX. 



Picking . 



Returns. 



CHAPTER XXI. 
CHAPTER XXII. 



Markets . 



CHAPTER XXIII. 



Profit. 



Culture after a Crop. 

Uses 

Insects and Diseases . . . 

Special Culture . . . 

The Peach-House 

Varieties 

Descriptive Catalogue. 
Fancy Varieties 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

CHAPTER XXV. 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

CHAPTER XXVII. 

CHAPTER XXVIII. 

CHAPTER XXIX. 

CHAPTER XXX. 

CHAPTER XXXI. 



85 



87 



.92 



94 



100 



.102 



.108 



111 



.112 



.114 



.118 



122 



.138 



.146 



,1.T.3 



.167 



.188 



INTRODUCTION. 

In some sections of our country, Peaches are a staple 
production, and predominant interest, and their cultiva- 
tion is very rapidly increasing. In these it is no longer 
an experiment, but an established, understood, and suc- 
cessful business ; and, like other established interests, is 
prosecuted with skill, economy, and profit. 

But not so everywhere. New districts are opening up ; 
new men are engaging in the business ; thousands of acres 
are devoted to peach orchards where none were known 
before. The area of the Peach is not only widening, but 
is transferring itself to new fields. But the skill neces- 
sary to success does not always accompany new enter- 
prises. Amateurs, fortune-seekers, and novices of all 
kinds, impelled by the love of Nature, in one of her most 
beautiful forms, or the hope of fortunes, rapidly gained, 
become planters. The end — covering our beautiful hills, 
and vales, and plains, with rich, luscious fruits — is a noble 
and laudable aim. Every one should rejoice at it ; every 
one should encourage and aid it. It is a public benefac- 
tion. It should enlist our patriotism and benevolence. 

But the uninstructed must, necessarily, err. Art is not 
the result of instinct, but the product of education. The 
unskilled must be instructed ; those Avho do not know 
how, must learn. Peach growing must be learned as w^ell 
as other things ; and, although the interest is already im- 
mense, and rapidly increasing, yet no practical treatise on 
this subject has been published. Planters who have not 
had personal experience, have been left to grope in the 
dark — to try, fail, and try again. This, in many cases, 
has been expensive ; in some, ruinous ; in all, vexatious. 
To avoid this, and to make clear what, to some, at least, 
9 * 1* 



10 PEACH CULTURE. 

may be obscure, these pages have been prepared. They 
have been written with that view, and for that purpose, 
and are very minute in details, and severely practical in 
description. 

In this introductory chapter, we propose to speak of 
matters of a more general nature ; not, indeed, essential 
to success in business, but, nevertheless, interesting, and 
useful to the intelligent and cultivated planter. 

Most of our large peach growers are gentlemen of 
wealth, refinement, and leisure ; many of great social, and 
some of high official, position. They have engaged in 
this honorable and delightful pursuit not only as a means 
of increasing their revenues, but also of gratifying their 
rural tastes. In the early spring, the soft and delicate 
tints of the peach blossoms gladden the eye, while the 
air becomes fragrant with their delightful j^erfume. In 
the high noon of summer, Beauty crowns herself with 
Plenty, and dispenses health, wealth, and happiness, in 
her flowery way. Thus, flowers and fruit, beauty and 
use, are delightfully blended, and the peacli plantations 
become at once a source of present gratitude and future 
hope to their owners. 

Such planters will be expected, and should be able, not 
only to tell how peaches are grown, and where they are 
sold, but also to speak of their origin and history, the 
countries in which they flourish, and the latitudes that 
limit their production. 

In the brief s[)ace of an introduction, we can only give 
an outline of the subject, which we hope will be useful, 
not so much for what it imparts, as for stimulating a de- 
sire to know more. To trace the history of the peach, 
from its origin to the present day, would be a very inter- 
esting and pleasing task, and we cordially commend it 
to the many intelligent and public spirited planters on the 
Delaware Peninsula, who have both the leisure and abili- 
ty to perform it in a manner worthy of the subject. 



rNTRODUCTION. ] 1 

The botanical name of the peach is best known as 
Amygdalus Persica^ though the late authorities unite 
the Peach, Apricot, Plum, and Cherry, all in one genus, 
under Prunus. For the purposes of the present work, 
we retain the older name, Amygdalus^ which is a genus 
of the Natural Order Rosacem^ and under the Linnean 
classification, is placed in the class and order Icosandria 
Monogynia. The genus consists of trees or shrubs, with 
simple leaves. Calyx with a bell-shaped tube, and five 
spreading lobes, deciduous. Petals five, inserted at the 
throat of the calyx tube. Stamens numerous, with slen- 
der filaments. Pistil solitary, with a single style. Fruit 
a fleshy drape, usually velvety, with a bony putamen, or 
stone, much roughened with wrinkles and holes ;* the 
kerne], or seed, proper, having the flavor of prussic acid. 
There are ten species of the genus, the most important of 
which are 

Amygdalus Persica. — The Peach. Drupe fleshy, and 
indehiscent. Introduced from Persia, but unknown in 
the wild state, and is supjDosed to have originated from 
the Almond. The flesh in some varieties readily separates 
from the stone (free stones), and in others it adheres with 
more or less firmness (clings). A smooth variety, var. 
laevis, is the Nectarine ; a double-flowering one is culti- 
vated for ornament, and a variety, with the fruit curi- 
ously compressed, is the Flat Peach, of China. 

A. communis, — Almond. The drupe dry, and ir- 
regularly dehiscent (as it is in all the following species) ; 
leaves oblong, lanceolate ; calyx bell-shaped. Tree twenty 
or more feet high. Native of Maurtiania, and the moun- 
tainous parts of Asia. There are numerous varieties, with 
sweet and bitter kernels. 



* The name Amyi^dalus has reference to this character of the stone, it being 
derived from the Greek word to lacerate. 



12 PEACH CULTURE. 

A. nana. — Dwarf Almond. Leaves oblong-linear, 
tapered at the base ; calyx cylindrically bell-shaped ; 
fruit, as in A. communis, but smaller ; a low shrub. A 
native of Northern Asia, sometimes cultivated in gardens 
for its double and white flowered varieties. 

A. orientalis — Leaves lanceolate, nearly entire, and 
with the small branches silvery-downy. A large shrub ; 
a native of the Levant. 

A. Cochinchinensis. — Leaves, ovate, entire, shiny; 
flowers, white. A large tree ; a native of Cochin China. 

Of the first species, the Peach of the English; the 
Peche of the French ; the Pesca of the Italians ; the 
Persigo of the Spaniards ; the Persego of the Portuguese, 
and the Pfirsich of the Germans, there are generally reck- 
oned two varieties — the Peach proper, with downy fruit, 
and the Nectarine^ with smooth fruit. There is abundant 
evidence that the latter is a mere accidental production 
of the former. The general characteristics are identical, 
while the difierence is but slight, and consists principally 
in the presence or absence of the pubescence on the skin. 
The Nectarine^ both in tree and fruit, is not so vigorous, 
hardy, or durable as the peach ; it is more easily aifected 
by disease, and the attacks of insects ; sheds its fruit more 
easily, and oftener fails to produce a crop. 

The Peach is a tree of medium size, with a spreading 
head ; long, narrow, lanceolate, and serrate leaves, which 
are of a deep green color, until late in the fall, when 
they assume a brown or yellow tinge; flowers, pink and 
rose-colored, profuse, and fragrant; fruit, rich, juicy, vinous 
and melting, when highly cultivated, but often small, 
hard, and bitter, when neglected. For size, quality, 
productiveness, and value, it may be regarded as the 
queen of stone fruits. 

The size of the tree varies very much, owing to the dif- 
ference in soil, climate, and cultivation. In the cold re- 



INTRODUCTION. 13 

gions of the North, it seldom attains a diameter of more 
than five or six inches, and a height of fifteen or twenty 
feet, while in the generous soil and genial clime of the 
South, it frequently grows to the height of thirty feet, or 
even more, and swells to a diameter of eighteen or twenty 
inches. We have ourselves seen them of fully this latter 
size in Arkansas and Texas ; and in August, 1869, some 
old trees were measured on the Delaware Bay and found 
to have a girth of nearly six feet. 

The tree is supposed to be short-lived, and, except in 
a genial soil, may be so regarded. But even in latitude 
41° North, it has attained its three-score years, vigorous 
in old age, and still producing respectable crops of good 
fruit. Such instances, however, are rare. Farther South, 
it lives much longer ; and on the Peninsula, and in East- 
ern Virginia, there are still standing many flourishing 
trees, which were planted more than seventy years ago ; 
and if they receive the attention they should, it is be- 
lieved they will live to be a hundred years old. In 
France, there are several well attested cases of trees being 
in good condition when over ninety years old. It has 
been noted in these cases that the trees all become hollow, 
while the shell retains its thrift and vio;or. It is also to 
be remarked that, in none of these instances does the size 
ever approach that attained in our own land ; the largest, 
so far as we have observed, not exceeding one foot in 
diameter. Eight of these venerable old trees may still be 
seen on a terrace wall, at the Chateau de Villiers, near 
Ferte-Aleps. They still produce abundantly ; and the 
gardener affirms that, thirty years ago, when he took 
charge of the grounds, they were as large as now. Their 
productiveness he attributes to careful pruning. But 
what gardener ever doubted but that success was at- 
tributable to his skill ! 

In the transactions of the Horticultural Society of 
France, published a few years since, an account of an- 



14 PEACH CULTUKE. 

Other remarkable tree was given. It was found in tlie 
grounds of Monsieur Jubert, near Yilleneuve, and was 
trained on one of the wings of his mansion, whicli it 
nearly covered. It was known, certainly, to be over 
ninety-three years old, and believed to be more than one 
hundred. It was still in good health and vigor, and pro- 
duced good crops regularly. It was carefully pruned 
every year. With this exception, it received no special 
attention. Notwithstanding its great age, it had only at- 
tained a diameter of ten inches a short distance above the 
ground — not half so great as some of our trees in Dela- 
ware, not half so old. 

The peach is propagated by seed, by grafting, and by bud- 
ding. Propagation from fruit or seed is the natural way, and 
the only source of new varieties. Trees produced from seed 
are more vigorous, freer from disease, hardier, more certain 
bearers, and live longer than when produced by inoccula- 
tion; but as the character of the fruit is uncertain, and the 
quality generally inferior, this method has been altogether 
discarded, except when new varieties are sought. Although 
the peach may be grafted with success, yet it is so tedious 
and unsatisfactory, when compared with budding, that it 
has been totally abandoned for the latter, which now re- 
mains the only means in use for propagating the peach. 

The Peach is supposed to be a native of Persia, and its 
botanical name refers to that origin. It is known to have 
flourished in both Persia and China at a very early period, 
and was highly valued in both countries. It has often been 
found growing spontaneously in Asiatic Turkey. It is men- 
tioned by Pliny, and several other classical writers, and 
many anecdotes are related of the veneration and even 
superstition with which it was regarded by the Asiatics. 
There is no doubt but it was one of the "Trees of 
the Garden" which God planted in Eden, and which 
were to nourish and cheer our first parents in their 
pristine purity and happiness. It is not mentioned in 



INTRODUCTION. 15 

the Bible, but its congener, the almond, is mentioned sev- 
eral times, and as early as the days of Jacob. And 
we find, when he was preparing his present for the 
Governor of Egypt, he commanded his sons to take 
'' myrrh, nuts, and almo)ids " as a gift, showing the 
esteem in which it was then held. Again, in the di- 
rections for making the golden candlestick, among the 
ornaments, the myrtle and almond are mentioned as of 
the chief. 

The Peach, like civilization itself, traveled from this 
centre Westward into Europe, and we find it mentioned 
in Roman history in the reign of the Emperor Claudius. 
It was highly valued by the patricians of Rome, and was 
cultivated by them as one of their choicest luxuries. It 
is still a standard tree in Italy. 

It was introduced into England from Italy, about the 
middle of the sixteenth century, and has been cultivated 
there as an exotic ever since. Her cool, moist climate, 
however, prevents its general cultivation, and it is only 
grown on walls or under glass, and the fruit is seldom 
seen except on the tables of the aristocracy. 

Even in France, where the climate is much milder, it is 
not always reared without protection, and the fruit has 
never gone into general use, but is a delicacy confined to 
the wealthy alone, the cultivation being confined princi- 
pally to gardens. 

In China it is extensively cultivated in the gardens of 
the rich, and has attained an extraordinary size. But of 
their manner of propagation and culture but little is yet 
known, owing to the exclusive policy heretofore pursued 
by that ancient Empire. ISTow, since its amelioration, 
among the many other benefits hoped for, a more accu- 
rate and complete knowledge of the peach is one. The 
Chinese are great gardeners, and much aifect the curious 
in horticultural as in other arts, and we may expect to 
learn much that is interesting, if not useful. We know 



16 PEACH CULTURE. 

already that they produce peaches of very large size, and 
two, at least, of rare shape, — the Chinese Flat, and Crooked 
Peach. With this beginning, we will not be surprised at 
still more curious developments. The curiosity, ingenuity, 
and enterprise of our countrymen will soon discover 
whatever may be known. 

It is to our credit that the United States is the only 
country in the world that, either in ancient or modern 
times, has produced peaches in sufficient quantities to al- 
low them to become a common marketable commodity ; 
so cheap that the poor, as well as the rich, may regale 
themselves and their families with one of the most whole- 
some and delicious of fruits at a very small expense, and 
with every prospect that they will still be more abund- 
ant and cheap. While these pages are being written, 
peaches are selling in the Xew York market for thirty- 
five and seventy-five cents a basket ; and the receipts 
vary from fifty to one hundred and sixty thousand bas- 
kets per day. 

While the Peach can be successfully cultivated in the 
United States, out-of-doors, anywhere south of 42° Xorth 
latitude, and under an altitude of nine thousand feet, yet 
it is not a sure crop north of 40°. But south of this, even 
to Florida and Texas, it flourishes with the greatest luxu- 
riance. Still there are some localities and sections that, 
owing to their peculiar topography and soil, are much 
better suited to this fruit than others. First amongst 
these stands the Delaware Peninsula^ embracing the State 
of Delaware, and the eastern shore of Maryland and Vir- 
ginia, a territory of about six thousand square miles. 
W^ithim these limits it is believed more peaches are pro- 
duced than in any other of the same extent anywhere. 
The centre of this peach-producing region is Kent County, 
Delaware, which produces more peaches, and of better 
quality, than any other territory of the same size in the 
world. 



INTRODUCTION. 17 

With an area of six hundred square miles, or three 
hundred and eighty-four thousand acres, she will send to 
market the present season, 1869, about one million 
baskets. The estimate made for her by the Peninsula 
Fruit Growers* Association^ on the 18th of May, 
1869, was six hundred and twenty-five thousand 
baskets ; but now, August 12th, in the midst of the pick- 
ing season, it is manifest that that estimate is much too 
low. It is here the largest orchards, as well as the finest 
fruit, are found. One planter, within a short distance of 
Dover, has six hundred acres of peach orchard. Many 
others have from ten to twenty thousand trees, and often 
ship from ten to fifteen hundred baskets a day. 

In New Castle County, adjoining, there are some very 
fine orchards, and great and special care is taken in their 
cultivation. Fine, erect trees, head rows nicely trimmed, 
and a smooth, clean surface, attest the taste and care of 
their proprietors. It is a pleasure to look at them. But 
the soil is a little too heavy, and the climate a shade colder 
than in Kent ; and, consequently, the peaches do not come 
in so early, crops oftener miss, and the cultivation is not 
quite so much a success. The three great shipping points 
of this county are Odessa, Middletown, and Townsend, 
from all of which large quantities of beautiful and deli- 
cious fruit are shipped. 

In Sussex County, just south of Kent, the extensive 
cultivation of the peach is but of recent date. The soil 
is lighter, which will tend to advance the maturity of the 
fruit as well as the tree, and thus enable planters to put 
their peaches into market several days earlier, than in 
Kent and New Castle, which is a considerable advantage. 
Several new railroads have been completed within her 
borders during the present year, which will afford her 
greater facilities to get to market, and stimulate still fur- 
ther this great and greatly increasing interest. 



18 PEACH CULTURE. 

The prospects now are that, in a few years, Sussex County 
will rival Kent in the extent and value of her peach crop. 

The Maryland counties lying contiguous are also in- 
creasing their peach area; and, in consequence of the 
completion of several branch railroads, peach growing 
will receive a strong impetus. Their soil and climate are 
in all respects well adapted to the production of this de- 
licious fruit. 

The two Virginia counties on the eastern shore possess 
equal natural advantages, but the want of railroad facili- 
ties has heretofore prevented them from availing them- 
selves of such to the same extent as their neighbors. 

There can be no doubt that the Delaware Peninsula 
alone, has capacity to produce peaches enough to supply 
Pennsylvania, New York, New England, and Canada. 

The crop of the Peninsula for 1869 has been estimated 
as high as four million baskets, but we think this too high. 
It has certainly been three millions, or more ; perhaps three 
and a half This estimate is made principally from actual 
statistics. The railroad carried 2,115,500; the steamers, 
from Mahon, about 300,000 ; from other points, probably 
800,000 ; in all, 3,215,500. 

New Jersey was the first to engage in peach culture ex- 
tensively, and for export, and, for many years, took the 
lead. But, more recently, she has nearly abandoned the 
business, except in a few localities. Several causes have 
contributed to this result. One of these has been the 
prevalence of the Yellows^ which has ravaged her beauti- 
ful orchards with remorseless fury. This fatal disease 
seems not only to be epidemic there, but localized^ and 
chronic. Young orchards are attacked almost as soon as 
they come into bearing, and are generally worthless after 
the second crop. 

Another is, that the cultivation of small fruits, such as 
strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries, has been found 



INTRODUCTION.- 19 

much more profitable, as Avell as the returns quicker, and 
thousands of acres have been given to them. 

Still another is, that the richer soil, milder climate, 
earlier maturity, and finer fruit of the Peninsula, have 
rendered competition useless in this branch of agricul- 
ture. The result is, that she has wisely abandoned peach 
culture, as a leading interest, and devoted herself dili- 
gently to berries, in which she has been eminently suc- 
cessful. Her crop of peaches now, even in a good season, 
does not exceed two hundred thousand baskets. It is 
sold in New York and Philadelphia. 

Ohio ranks high as a peach growing State. Along the 
lake shore, on the sand-stone hills of the Ohio river, and 
on the uplands of the Miami valley, large quantities of 
peaches are raised. Thin land, and high ridges, suit best. 
The orchards are generally small, — not exceeding two 
thousand trees, and seldom half so many. The trees 
commence bearing, if the season be favorable, the third 
year, and average two or three crops. The average pro- 
duction is about half a bushel to a tree. The fruitful 
seasons are generally five or six in a period of ten years. 
Much of the fruit is shipped to Cincinnati, Cleveland, and 
other points. It is usually sent in bushel boxes. The 
price varies very much, as it does everywhere. Fifty 
cents to four dollars per bushel may be set down as the 
extremes, and the net returns to the planter from naught 
to two dollars — the earliest and latest varieties being the 
most profitable. The crop of 186T was very large, and 
was returned by the assessors of internal revenue for that 
year at an aggregate of 1,450,000 bushels. Our private in- 
formation leads us to believe this an over estimate. In 1869, 
it is set down at 599,499 bushels. There is no doubt but 
that it may be greatly increased ; but were it double what 
it is, it could all be consumed within the limits of the 
State and a few neighboring cities. In addition to the 



20 PEACH CULTURE. 

horer and yellows^ the planter has to contend with tlie 
curculio, which is much more injurious and troublesome. 

In no part of the world, perhaps, is the ameliorating 
influence of large bodies of water on temperature more 
distinctly marked than in Michigan. This State, with the 
exception of a narrow strip on her southern border, not 
exceeding twenty miles wide, lies north of forty-two 
north latitude. The northern limits of Ohio and Indiana 
bound her on the south. She is north of Omaha, Des 
Moines, Toledo, Cleveland, Pittsburg, Philadelphia, and 
New York ; and a parallel line, extended from her centre, 
eastward, would cut through Canada, New York, Ver- 
mont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Nova Scotia ; and 
westward, through AVisconsin, jMinnesota, Dakota, Idaho, 
and Oregon. Yet, notwithstanding all tliis, she stands in 
the front rank of fruit growing States, and competes with 
Ohio and California in the production o^ peaches! Her 
success in the cultivation of this fruit is wonderful, and, 
it is believed, altogether unprecedented in the same high 
latitude. But a satisfactory explanation is found in her 
happy geographical position, which is as unique as her 
productions are remarkable. She is almost surrounded 
by water ! The great lake, whose name she bears, covers 
her on the west and north-west, as with a blanket, and soft- 
ens the dry piercing w^inds of those regions, until they 
become moist and almost balmy. Lake Huron performs 
the same kind office for her on the north and north-east ; 
while Erie supplements the good w^ork on the south-east. 
Tlicse lakes are immense bodies of water, hundreds of 
miles long, and about a hundred wide, and from a hundred 
and fifty to a thousand feet deep, and the climatic influence 
they exert is wonderful and highly beneficial. Hence it is 
that Michigan, lying between 42° and 45°, ranks as a first 
class fruit producing State, and can successfully compete 
with Ohio and California in the production of peaches. 

Her last crop was reported at seven hundred and fifty- 



INTRODUCTION. 21 

one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight baskets, valu- 
ed at seventy-five cents a basket, or five hundred and six- 
ty-three thousand seven hundred and twenty-two dollars, 
in the aggregate. 

The sandy lands of the western shore are found to be 
best for peach culture ; and both land and water here 
combine to produce, in great excellence, this delicious 
fruit. The close proximity of Chicago and Milwaukee 
affords a good and convenient market for the planters in 
the west ; and Detroit, Toledo, and Cleveland for those in 

the east. 

In Southern Illinois the Peach does very well. In the 
north it is too cold. Thin soils, hills, ridges, and light 
prairies do best, as the uplands about Alton, and prairies 
in the neighborhood of Centralia. The average production 
per tree is about half a bushel. 

The fruit is principally shipped to Chicago, St. Louis, 
Cincinnati, and some other minor points. 

We have been unable to obtain reliable information 
either in regard to the quantity produced or the special 
culture ; but it is believed to be almost identical with that 
of Ohio. 

Peaches are also cultivated to some extent in Indiana ; 
more especially in the south-west, and on the shores of Lake 
Michigan in the north. Most of the fruit, however, is 
consumed at liome. It has never attracted much atten- 
tion, or elicited any decided effort. Her clay lands, and, 
in some places, springy soil, seem to forbid the successful 
I cultivation of the Peach. In special localities it could no 
doubt, be made remunerative ; and, to some extent, has 
been. 

Kentucky has a more congenial soil and climate, which 
ought to command complete success ; yet it has never be- 
come a leading pursuit. This may be, in j^art, attributable 
to her great capacity and success in corn and stock rais- 
ing, and in part to early bias, strengthened and confirmed 



22 PEACH CULTURE. 

into habitual tendency. Portions of the State are eminently 
adapted to peach growing, while her proximity to good 
markets, with great facilities, both by land and water, to 
reach them, are strong incentives to engage in this delight- 
ful rural pursuit. Peach culture, however, in Kentucky, is 
confined principally to the borders on the Ohio river, and 
the vicinity of Cincinnati and Louisville. Along the Ohio 
very little is raised for market, but much for home con- 
sumption ; while in the neighboi"hood of Louisville, enough 
is raised to supply the city, and some for export. 

Very fine peaches are raised in Missouri, especially on 
the hills and near rivers. Other interests have hitherto 
engaged the attention and efforts of her j^eople ; but with 
a climate and soil so kind, transportation so easy and 
cheap, and markets so near and good, she cannot much 
longer refrain from engaging extensively in this delightful 
pursuit ; and before years have elapsed, we will not be 
surprised to see Missouri take a prominent position in 
Peach Culture. She already ranks high as a wine grow- 
ing State. 

Her sister Kansas has already distinguished herself for 
the variety, beauty, and excellency of her fruit, as well as 
the interest and enterprise she has shown in its culture. 

At the great National Exhibition at Philadelphia in 
1869, few displays weie more admired or commended 
than hers ; and her peaches were especially attractive. 
For a young State she has shown very commendable 
zeal, as well as progress. 

In Arkansas and Texas peaches do well, and the trees 
attain an enormous size. But the cultivation receives but 
little attention ; the orchards are small, and the aggregate 
number of trees inconsiderable. 

This is partly owing to the want of knowledge, and 
consequent indifference, on the part of the people ; but 
principally to the want of good markets and easy access 



INTRODUCTION. 23 

to them, whereby the culture might be made profitable. 
When these are afibrded, it will no doubt increase. 

Along the Atlantic slope, from Sandy Hook to Cape 
Sable, there is scarcely a district in which the Peach does 
not flourish. 

Of New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland, we have al- 
ready spoken. The remaining Atlantic States, without 
exception, produce peaches, and of great excellence. But 
the culture has languished from the same cause, but not 
to the same degree, as that operating in Arkansas and 
Texas, the want of a convenient market and cheap trans- 
portation. They have no great cities at hand, with their 
swarming millions, to consume their surplus ; hence the 
cultivation has been confined to a sufficiency for home use. 

But the recent and rapid extension of railroad facilities, 
has given a new impetus to this branch of agriculture ; 
and within the last three years, it is believed at least two 
hundred thousand trees have been planted on the Atlantic 
slope south of Maryland. Most of these, perhaps four- 
fifths, have been planted in Virginia and North Carolina. 

In the latter, one company have set from eighty thous- 
and to one hundred thousand trees. 

In Georgia, Alabama, and Florida, they grow luxuri- 
antly, although they have not yet received special atten- 
tion, having been overshadowed by other interests. 

Virginia may be regarded as tlie mother of Peaches as 
well as of Presidents, for, for more than half a century 
she was the principal peach grower of the Union ; and 
while Pennsylvania and New Jersey were cultivating a 
few trees in fence rows and gardens, she had large and 
flourishing orchards, numbering thousands of trees. The 
seed was brought from England by the early settlers, and 
found here a much more congenial soil and clime than in 
the mother country. Indeed, it is worthy of remark, that 
almost every variety brought from England does better 



24 PEA.CH CULTURE. 

here than there ; while those taken from here, do worse. 
The reason is found in the diiference of soil and climate. 

Fifty years ago, peaches, in Virginia, were raised prin- 
cijially for distillation, and from them Avas made a strong, 
but pure, spirit, called Peach Brandy^ a very popular 
drink, and, perhaps, as harmless as any of its class. In 
the peacli districts, every neighborhood had its distillery, 
as every one had its mill, and the surrounding planters 
either got their fruit distilled on shares, or sold it to the 
owner of a still. In the latter case, the usual j^rice was 
twelve and a half cents per bushel^ and good brandy 
could be bought at prices ranging from twenty to fifty 
cents per gallon ! But that was before internal revenue 
officers were known, and before the producer had to pay 
a tenth or more of all he made to the tax gatherer. In 
those halcyon days, what a man made was his own, and 
he was allowed to enjoy it without fear of having to 
share it with strangers who had not assisted in its pro- 
duction. 

But peaches increased, while brandy drinking decreased, 
and their cultivation ceased to be profitable. Hence, it 
was almost abandoned, except for home use, and Virginia 
fell far behind New Jersey and Delaware as a peach grow- 
ing State. But the same causes that are operating in the 
States further south of her, influence her also ; and it is 
believed that, in a very few years, she will again place 
herself in the front rank of producers. 

In New England the Peach does not do well, and is 
but little cultivated. Her soil is not the best, but the 
most serious obstacles are found in her long, severe winters, 
and cold, moist, north-easterly winds, which must always 
prevent its general or extensive cultivation. But in pro- 
tected situations, on the south sides of warm walls, under 
glass, and in pots, it is successfully cultivated as a choice 
luxury. And in this, as in other exotics, art and perse- 
verance compel nature to yield her choicest sweets. It is 



IIMTRODUCTION. 35 

remarked here, as in other parts of the country, that the 
Peach does not succeed as well as formerly; oftener fails to 
produce a crop, and is more liable to disease and insects. 
This deteriorati<m, as elsewhere, is attributed to various 
causes, but the more common opinion seems to be that it 
is due to climatic modifications. In the absence of satis- 
factory data, we are inclined to believe that, in all cases, 
it was owing more to the change in aliments of the soil 
than anything else. I)i new lands, v)here ve'jetable mould 
was abundant, we haoe never known the Peach to fall. 
If the same plant-food could be continuously furnished, 
we doubt not the same vigor would characterize the tree, 
and the same crops would be produced. But truly, much 
is yet to be learned in regard to the Peach. Many crude 
and fantastic notions have been entertained and advanced 
in regard to it. A single incident, some fortuitous cir- 
cumstance it may be, has fixed a thought in the mind, and 
this has produced a theory which has been advanced, ad- 
vocated, disseminated, and reiterated until it has grown 
into a popular fallacy. Half a century ago, Mr. Thomas 
Coulter, of Bedford, Pennsylvania, insisted that the only 
successful way to obtain a good, healthy peach orchard, 
was to cut doicn the trees when three years old — just be- 
fore coming-in — then let t^he sprouts grow up all around 
the old stump until they should come into bearing, three 
years after, when they would naturally be reduced to 
about half a dozen young, thrifty, and productive trees ! 
Unique and peculiar as this system was, it found many 
advocates, and was gravely and elaborately supported in 
erudite treatises ! 

On the Pacific coast, the Peach, like almost every other 
fruit, finds a congenial home, and is extensively culti- 
vated even as far north as Oregon. But California, that 
wonderful land of surpassing lichness, not only in gold 
and silver, and precious stones, but in silk, wheat and 
wine, and oranges, and pomegranates, and apples, and 
2 



26 PEACH CULTURE. 

pears, also produces peaches in large and increasing quan- 
tities. Here the peach comes in much sooner than is 
known elsewhere ; it is even asserted that a seed, sown at 
the proper season, will produce fruit in eigliteen months, 
while the ordinary time is no more than two years. 

Until recently its cultivation lias received hut little at- 
tention. The Avant of a near and profitable market, the 
perishable nature of the fruit itself, the superior keeping 
qualities of others; the leading interest of the mines, and 
the high price of labor, naturally and necessarily retarded 
Peach Culture. But now, since the introduction of Chinese 
labor, the completion of the Pacific railroad, the reduction 
of the profits of wine making, grain growing, and mining, 
a new impetus has been given to this beautiful and gener- 
ally profitable branch of in<lustry, and it is likely soon to 
become an important, though not a leading interest. For, 
although the j^roductive capacity is almost unlimited, the 
market is confined to home consumption and a few points 
in the interior along the line of the railroad. And while 
apples, oranges, grapes, and even pears may be shipped to 
eastern markets, the peach never can, until some new 
method of preserving its freshness has been discovered. 

This obstacle to its extended cultivation may, to 
some extent at least, be obviated by canning the fruit ; 
and, if new markets could be made in South America, 
China and Japan for this American luxury, the business 
might become very profitable. 

Notwithstanding, however, all counteracting influence, 
the soil and climate are so conducive, that large quantities 
are produced annually ; and the number of trees now 
planted is stated to be 800,000, which are distributed 
among thirteen counties as follows : Sacramento, 74,000 ; 
Santa Clara, 70,000; El Dorado, 56,000 ; Sonoma, 52,000; 
San Joaquin, 45,000 ; Butte, 40,000. The seven counties 
to wit : Napa, Placer, Toulumne, Colusa, Almador, Yolo, 



INTRODUCTION. 27 

and Yuba, have from twenty to thirty thousand respec- 
tively. 

Althonirh the climate of Ore2:on is not too cold for the 
Peach, it is too humldy except in the southern part, and 
in some topographically fortunate localities where it suc- 
ceeds well. 

In 1869, a gentleman in the Walla Walla Valley writes, 
that he raised a thousand bushels of fine peaches off an 
orchard of five acres planted six years before. If this is 
reliable, and is to be taken as an average yield, it surpass- 
es even the best orchards of the East. But Ave incline to 
the opinion that the circumstances were unusually happy, 
or that the statement is slightly exaggerated. 

This brief, and somewhat hasty, view of the Peacli Cul- 
ture, is still sufiicient to show the wonderful capacity of 
our country for its production in rare excellence, and with 
the least possible labor or care. While the people of less 
favored regions have to prepare, if not make, a soil, pro- 
vide a shelter, and labor, and watch, and wait for a scanty 
crop of small and inferior fruit, the citizens of our most 
highly favored land have millions upon millions of acres of 
the most suitable soil, where the trees grow luxuriantly and 
bear bountifully, in a few years, almost without care, and 
without any slielter, except the starry canopy of a benig- 
nant sky which our Heavenly Father's love has spread 
over us all. 

What a wonderful land we have ! Mountains and val- 
leys, and plains ; rivers, and lakes, and seas ; wheat, and 
figs, and oranges, and pomegranates ; apples, and pears, 
and peaches ; corn, and oats ; milk, and oil, and wine ; flax 
and wool, and silk ; coal, and iron, and copper ; and silver, 
and gold, and precious stones ! And free to enjoy them 
all ! None to molest or make us afraid ! What a spectacle 
of munificence and power ! What a wonderful display of 
divine goodness ! Can we do aught else than exclaim with 
the Royal Psalmist of Israel, " Oh, that men would praise 



28 PEACH CULTURE. 

the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to 
the children of men ! " 

Sad thought that, through our ingratitude, folly, and 
sin we may turn this cup of blessing and happiness into 
one of misfortune and misery ! But let us hope and pray 
for the continued favor of Him who " doeth all things 
well ; " and let each strive individually to discharge his 
own appropriate duty ; and so live that he may join w^ith 
a good conscience in this beautiful and solemn invocation : 

" O be Thou still our guardian God ; 
Preserve these States from every foe; 
From party rage, from scenes of blood, 
From sin, and every cause of woe. 

Here ma}^ the great Redeemer reiirn, 
Display his grace and saving power; 
Here libeity and truth maintain. 
Till empires fall to rise no more." 



SITE OF NURSERY. 29 

CHAPTER I. 

SITE OF NURSERY. 

As much of the success of the nursery will depend 
upon the ground, the greatest care should be exercised in 
its selection. In mostof tlie Southern States, and especial- 
ly on the Delaware Peninsula, south of the Delaware and 
Chesapeake Canal, no difficulty will be met in obtaining a 
suitable site, as nearly every farm has a field or more in 
which a very eligible one may be found. But further 
north and west good sites are not so common. Still, it is 
believed there are but few sections, or even localities, in 
which, by a little care, good ones may not be had. The 
land should be dry. All that holds water should be re- 
jected, because, first, it will retard planting and cultiva- 
tion, and render the latter much more difficult and ex- 
pensive. Secondly, the seed will be longer in coming up, 
and, if the season should be late and cold, much of it 
may rot. 

It should not only be dry^ but it should be lights and 
warm. A sandy soil is in every way to be preferred. 
The peach seems to delight in it. It accelerates maturity 
and fructification. Clay soil is not suitable. It is too 
stifif; it is hard to till ; it is too retentive of moisture ; it 
bakes, and becomes lumpy, and it should be rejected 
without hesitation, unless no other can be had. Gravelly 
soil is better, and, if naturally good, or artificially en- 
riched, will answer. The rich alluvials of our river bot- 
toms do very well ; and when a rapid and vigorous growth, 
and large, showy trees are desired, are excellent ; but we 
do not commend them, especially if the trees are not to 
be set in an orchard where the land is equally good ; for 
if the growth has been too much stimulated, and the trees 
become too large, it will be more of an injury than bene- 



30 PEACH CULTURE. 

fit. The soil in the orchard should rather be superior 
than inferior to that of the nursery, and then the growth 
will receive no check in transplanting. Planters will 
promote their own interests by noting this, and acting 
upon it. A good roadster is not obtained by stuffing the 
colt and starving the horse. 

For the sake of straight rows and uniformity of trees, 
and ease, convenience, and satisfaction of cultivation, the 
ground should be level. It should also be free from roots, 
stones, and other extraneous matter. Every inch of 
ground is wanted, and the cultivator can ill afford to have 
any part of his nursery taken up with roots or stones. 
Besides, they greatly interfere with the tillage, and often 
ruin a tree by accidentally striking off the bud. Corn 
stubble, or other land cultivated the preceding season, in 
hill or drill crop, is best ; for, if the cultivation has been 
good, it will be clean and mellow, the very thing for the 
ground-work of a good nursery. 

If the object be to rear trees for market, a site easy of 
access, on a public road, and near a depot, should be se- 
lected. This wall prove very convenient and advantage- 
ous. Out-of-the-way j^laces, and those beyond gates and 
bars, will be expensive. Hands have to be employed, 
time has to be consumed, delays ensue. All these involve 
outlay, diminish profits, and injure business. Discard 
them by seeking a location just at hand. You may have 
to pay more rent, but that, compared with the subse- 
quently increased incidental expenses, is nothing. Our 
advice is, be just in the proper place if you intend to 
succeed. Such a location, besides its convenience, will be 
an advertisement — a very striking one, and a very widely 
disseminated one. If the nursery is a fine one, it will 
elicit general remark and commendation, which will prove 
highly advantageous to the proprietor. This is especially 
true in the neighborhood of towns, where people are pass- 
ing and repassing continually, and where the very sight 



SEED. 31 

of fine trees is an incitement to plant an orchard, as well 
as a recommendation of the trees themselves. We could 
gi\e instances of large and profitable sales, referable to 
location alone. 

A planter who intends rearing merely for liis own use, 
will not be influenced by these considerations, and wil 
consult his taste or special convenience. 

In selecting a site for a nursery then, let it be a dry, 
light sandy soil, free from stones, and easy of access. 



CHAPTER IL 

SEED. 

The seed should be selected with great care. A mis- 
take here is radical, and cannot be corrected afterwards, 
as some others can. It is even more important to have 
good peach seed than good seed wheat or corn ; for, in 
the case of peaches, the orchard is to last for ten, fifteen, 
or even twenty years, while in that of wheat or corn it is 
only for a shigle season. In the latter, one crop only is 
injured ; in the former, ten, or a score. The seed should 
be healthy. The least appearance of disease in the trees 
should decide every prudent man to reject the seed of 
those trees when selecting for himself, and every honest 
one when selecting to sell. For if diseased seed be used, 
the young tree will not only be feeble and sickly, but the 
disease will most probably be disseminated in all direc- 
tions, and communicated toother trees, and thus incalcula- 
ble injury be done. Indeed, the man who sells promiscu- 
lously a drove of cattle infected with linderpest, does 
not do half so much injury as the one who disseminates 
diseased peach trees. 



32 



PEACH CULTURE. 



No seed, therefore, should be taken from an orchard 
that is diseased ; but especially none fiom any orchard in- 
fected in the least with the yellows, as this is, perhaps, tlie 
most contagious and unmanageable of all diseases inci- 
dent to peach culture. It should also be ripe fruit ; for, 
while the seed of an immature peach may not actually 
communicate disease to the young tree, yet it Avill most 
likely produce a feeble stock, predisposed to disease and 
short life. 

The seed should be of natural fruit. It is more vigor- 
ous, more hardy, more certain to germinate, and the trees 
live longer. This should never be overlooked by any 
planter who wishes the full reward of his labor. The 
seed of budded fruit will grow, it is true, but it is not so 
certain to do so. The kernels are often diseased or de- 
fective; hardly ever so firm, round, and nutty as the 
natural ones. The first effort of nature seems to be the 
reproduction and perpetuation of the tree in health and 
vigor ; that of art the production of fruit of the richest 
flavor and most delicate beauty. Both, in perfection, 
seem unattainable in one tree. If we want hijrhly vio-or- 
ous and long-lived trees, we must never bud or i^raft • 
but if we wish rich, luscious fruit, we must do both." But, 
as a healthy, vigorous tree is essential to the production 
of the finest fruit, we must strive for this also. Happily, the 
art of budding enables us to approximate both ; but they 
can only be produced by a constant repetition of innocu- 
lation on natural stocks. Hence, we must plant natural 
seed in order to obtain a healthy, vigorous tree, and bud 
on it an ingrafted cion, that we may have large, rich, 
and beautiful fruit. And wo may just as well expect fine 
fruit from repeatedly j^lanting natural seed, as fine trees 
from planting budded seed. An honest dealer will not, 
of course, sell the seed of budded fruit for natural ; but a 
little observation and experience will enable any one to 
judge for himself and avoid imposition. 



SEED. 33 

In buying seed, if the purchaser is inexperienced, he 
should call in the aid of some friend who has experience 
and knowledge in the matter. If he has to rely upon 
himself, a hint or two may be of advantage to him. 
Natural seed, then, is smaller than that of budded fruit. 
This is the rule. There may be some varieties which 
form exceptions, but they are not numerous. Hale's Early 
is one. 

The natural seed is also of /"azVe?' color. The natural 
may be called light-brown^ or hazel^ the budded, dark- 
brow?if or maroon. This difference is not always apparent 
to the unpracticed eye, but a dealer or nurseryman will 
detect it in an instant ; and any one will soon be able to 
do so by comparing a few samples of each. The shell is 
also closer grained, and the bowls or cavities smcdler in 
the natural than in the budded. They are also cleaner. 
In the budded fruit there often adheres a small quantity 
of the luscious juice or pulp to the pits ; this cleaves to 
the walls of the cavities, and is plainly discernable by 
close inspection. It also tends to give a darker shade to 
the color. The natural seed is also distinguished by the 
fineness of the xuiion of the two halves or valves of the 
stone. It is very close and tenacious, while in the budded 
it is often imperfect and slight. In the former, a separa- 
tion of the two valves, without fracture, is almost im- 
practicable, while in the latter it is often quite easy. In 
one case a hammer, in the other a knife, will be required. 
There is also nearly as much difference in the kernels. 
Those of the natural seed are quite hard, close, and nutty, 
as compact as a filbert, while the others are often defect- 
ive in form, and the two complementary halves of which 
they are formed frequently separate in handling, or may 
be separated by slight effort. Attention to these tests 
will enable any one to distinguish the seed of natural, 
from that of budded fruit. 

In former times, when nearly all our peaches were nat- 
2* 



34 PEACH CULTJRE. 

ural fruit, there was no difficulty in obtaining seed ; but 
in late years nearly all our old orchards of natural fruit 
have been abandoned and allowed to go into decay. 
Besides this, the cultivation of the peach has been so 
much extended, and the demand for seed so much in- 
creased, that it has become comparatively scarce. And 
while it used to be procured at almost a nominal price, 
say twenty-five cents a bushel, it now commands as much 
as wheat, and sometimes more. We are not aware of 
any place where orchards of natural fruit are maintained 
for the specific purpose of producing seed. That has not 
yet become necessary. In several of the States, especially 
in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and 
Virginia, there are still remnants of old orchards, isolated 
rows, or scattering trees of natural fruit, M'hich are toler- 
ated as relics of the j^ast, or cherished as reminiscences 
of youthful pleasures and enjoyments, recalling the mem- 
ories of a revered ancestry. From these old trees, 
broken down and renewed, perhaps a dozen times, comes 
our good seed, which is to furnish excellent stocks for our 
young, broad, and numerous orchards of later days. 
Besides these, in many nurseries a natural tree will spring 
up, escape detection, be shipped, and planted with the 
budded ones, and never discovered until in bearing ; then 
pity lets it stand ; and it, too, furnishes more good seed. 
This seed is saved by the children or tenants of the plant- 
ers, taken to the nearest store, and thus finds its way to 
market. Honest men, whether planters or merchants, 
deal in no other ; but the love of gain is so strong in many 
as to induce them to oflTer and buy the seed of the budded 
fruit, and large quantities of it get into market, where it is 
re-purchased by ignorant or reckless nurserymen and plant- 
ed ; and thus thousands of inferior or diseased trees are 
scattered over the country, to bring loss and disappoint- 
ment, where fortune and satisfaction would otherwise have 
attended. Hence, the great importance of nurserymen 



SEED. 35 

selecting good seed ; but especially of planters either rais- 
ing their own trees, or bnying only from those they know 
to be careful, intelligent, anl honest. There arc such, we 
know, and we are also sorry to know that there are some 
who are not such. Each class pursues its own course in 
the procurement of the seed. The one gives an order for 
so many bushels, for which a certain price will be paid ; 
the order is filled with such seed as can be procured at 
the price, leaving a margin for profit to the factor. The 
other employs local agents in sections in which good seed 
is known to abound, with instructions to purchase nothing 
but pure seed. When the time arrives for collecting it, 
the foreman, or some other reliable practical man, is sent 
to inspect it, and all that is not first-rate is rejected. In 
this Avay the nurseryman's reputation is established, and 
his business becomes large, profitable, and permanent. 

The greater part of seed for the Eastern markets is ob- 
tained in the eastern shore counties of Maryland and 
Virginia, especially in the latter, where the old natural 
orchards have not yet given place to those of budded fruit. 

The price of good seed varies from fifty cents to five 
dollars per bushel, according to locality and the abund- 
ance of the peach crop. About two dollars is the ordi- 
nary price. 

It requires from five to twelve bushels of seed to the 
acre, according as the nurseryman plants it, closely or 
widely. In the North they usually plant from seven to 
ten inches apart, while on the Peninsula only two and a 
half and three. In the latter they expect to, and do, rear 
from ten to twelve thousand first-class trees to the acre. 



36 PEACH CULTURE. 



CHAPTER III. 

SEED-BED. 

The proper time to prepare the seed-bed is just before 
freezinfr sets in in the fall. Some convenient spot in the 
garden or field is selected. It should be free from roots 
or stones, and is the better for having been cultivated in 
corn or vegetables the season before. It should be dry- 
land, that is, free from standing water during the winter 
in which the seed is to remain in the ground. 

When a suitable spot has been selected, the next thing 
is to mark it ofi*. It may be of any size desired. If the 
nursery is to be a large one, the more, of course, will be 
required. When this is done, the seed is thickly spread 
over the ground, about three inches deep. It is then 
*' spaded in." This is done by spading the ground cover- 
ed by the seed in the same manner as is usual in garden 
culture, and is usually about six inches deep. By this 
method the seed is completely mixed with, and covered 
up in the soil. Some is carried nearly or quite to the 
bottom of the stirred ground, and the rest is pretty well 
distributed between that and the surface. Here it lies 
freezing and thawing all winter, and by spring the shells 
are so far loosened as to be readily separated by a slight 
effort, or even in handling. The kernels will be found to 
be swollen, and many of them sprouted. They are now 
ready to be planted in the nursery. 

Another method is to spread the seed on the surface of 
the ground, cover it over with sawdust or spent tan bark, 
from three to five inches, and leave it to the weather, as 
before. This method is not so common as the first, but 
we believe it equally good, and not quite so laborious. 
Others, again, spread the bed over Avith the seed, then 
cover it about an inch deep with mold, then another layer 



PREPARATION OP GROUND FOR NURSERY. 37 

of seed, and so on, in alternate layers, until all is bedded ; 
and this they claim is the best method of all. Some make 
no seed-bed at all, but plant the seed at first in the nurs- 
ery. This method we shall speak of again when we come 
to treat of the nursery. 



CHAPTER IV. 

PREPARATION OF GROUND FOR NURSERY. 

This is simple, but it should be done with skill and care. 
The form should be a square or a parallelogram, and it 
is immaterial wliich. These forms are preferable, because 
the nurseryman wishes to avoid point rows, and they are 
the only ones that enable him to do so. The advantage 
of eve)i rows is found in fewer turns in preparing and cul- 
tivating the ground, less injury to the trees, and a conse- 
quent saving of both time and money. 

To secure this, the plat should be squared or staked off 
with the parallel lines running east and west at right 
angles with those running north and south. In this way 
there will be no lost ground nor point rows. The next 
thing is to plow the ground. This should be done in the 
spring, as soon as it is in good order — about the same 
time as for corn. Plowing should be thorough, and about 
the ordinary depth. From six to eight inches will do very 
well. The furrows should not be too wide ; they should 
be rather within than beyond the average. They should 
be of uniform width and depth. By observing these 
rules, complete pulverization and a very smooth surface 
will be attained. 

The next thing is the harrowiyig. The ordinary drag 
is the proper implement. If the ground is of the char- 



38 



PEACH CULTURE. 



a 



\l\ 



acter we have been describiDg as suitable, once or twice 
over will be sufficient. If stiff or cloddy, more Avill be 
required. In any case, all the lumps should be completely 
broken, and if any chips, roots, 5r stones, show themselves 
on the surface, they should be gathered up and cai-ried off. 
The ground should now be rolled with a good, heavy 

wooden or metal roller. 
This will thoroughly crush 
any remaining lumps that 
may have escaped both 
plow and harrow. It will 
also pack the ground, and 
give a very fine smooth 
surface. 

These preliminaries hav- 
ing been gone through, the 
only remaining preparation 
necessary is " signing " or 
marking out the ground. 
As the rows are to be plant- 
ed in drills, this, of course, 
is only done one way. From north to south is preferable, 
as the sun, light and heat, reaches more of the surface of 
the young trees than if the rows run in any other direction. 
The rows may be run with a light plow, as for corn, 

but this is not the best ^ 

way, and when the nursery 

is I'lrge, the following 

method will be found both 

economical and good. If the 

nursery is fenced off by itself, 

run a furrow parallel with the northern fence, and at the 

distance of four or five feet from it ; a similar one at the 

southern end, as shown at figure 1, where «, a, are the 

head rows, running east and west, and J, J, the nursery 

rows, running north and south. The rows of trees are 



a 



Fig. 1. — DIAGRAM OF NURSEUT. 




Fiff. 2.— MARKER. 



PREPARATION OF GROUND FOR NURSERY. 30 

to end at these furrows. The head rows afford space for 
turning the liorse in cultivating the nursery. They may 
be each occupied with a row of potatoes, if it is desired 
to till every inch of ground. The end of the tree rows 
should not extend close to the fence, as the young trees 
will certainly be injured by turning in the cultivation, and 
the ground will not be kept so clean. When this is done, 
run the row as straight as practicable north and south, 
and at the distance of three and a half to four feet apart. 
Tlie distance varies according as the character of the soil 
and climate affect the growth of the trees. In a rich 
southern soil, the gi-eater distance will be none too much; 
while in the North, especially if the soil is thin, the less 
will be quite sufficient. The depth of the furrow should 
not be less tlian an inch and a half, nor more than two 
and a half inches. 

Instead of the plow, a peculiar implement, a sort of 
sledge, is sometimes used, and with advantage. It is 
made by taking two pieces of oak plank, each four or five 
feet long, twelve inches wide, and two thick. The front 
ends are rounded off like a runner for a water-sled. The 
runners are then connected, sled-like, by two cross-bars, 
mortised and fastened into them, as in fig. 2. The distance 
apart is the distance desired for the rows, as above describ- 
ed. With this implement two rows instead of one can be 
made at the same time. Besides this, the depth of the 
rows as well as the distance apart will be more uniform. 
Altogether, it is much preferable, wliile the cost of mak- 
ing one is insignificant. Any intelligent farm hand can 
construct one. It may also be enlarged so as to mark 
three^ or even more, rows, by simply adding a runner for 
every additional row desired, and one, two, or three horses 
may be used to drag it. 



40 PEACH OULTLKE. 

CHAPTER V. 

PLANTING THE SEED. 

The nursery ground having been prepared as described 
in the preceding cliapter, the seed-bed is now overhauled. 
If the seed was buried in sawdust on the surface of the 
ground, or layered^ all that is now necessary, is to shovel 
up the seed and dust into coarse wire sieves, and sift out 
the latter. By this process a complete separation will 
take place, and the seed will remain in the sieves quite 
clean and nice. If it was spaded in^ the whole mass of 
the bed Avill have to be spaded up, and if it is loose and 
dry, it can be sifted, as in the former case ; but if wet or 
lumpy, it may be necessary to pick out the seed by hand. 

The seed is now carefully examined. The kernels have 
swollen so much as to have burst many of the shells, and 
loosened others. In some cases the shells have already 
fallen off, or will do so in handling. All these are ready 
to plant. Some cultivators will take off all the shells 
and place the kernels in the baskets to be carried to 
the nursery ; but this is not necessary, as they are no ob- 
struction to the growth of the germ. It has one advant- 
age, however ; it enables the cultivator to see exactly 
whether or not the seed is perfect. It also enables him 
to discover whether or not the shell has been sufficiently 
affected by the frosts of winter to prepare the seed for 
planting without further prejiaration. On examining a 
seed-bed, some of the seed will be found to be little af- 
fected by the previous freezing. These should be separated 
from the others, and cracked open with a hammer. This 
is done by taking the seed between the thumb and fore- 
finger of the left hand, placing it edgewise on a solid 
block, and giving it a sliarp, but moderate stroke with a 
light hammer. This will separate the two valves, and 



PLANTING THE SEED. 41 

leave the kernel uninjured. If this breaking process does 
not take place, that seed is not fit to plant the first season. 

When the seed has been thus taken up, sifted, 5>;helled, 
and deposited in baskets, it is ready to be carried to the 
nursery to be planted. If the sun is warm, or the wind 
dry, or both, the baskets are covered with damp cloths 
or matting, in order to keep the seed from beinij: injured 
by the exposure. It is always advisable to keep the seed 
in the baskets in about the same temperature and hu- 
midity it was before, as all sudden changes have a tend- 
ency to injure or destroy it. 

It is planted, in the rows already marked out, at about 
two inches and a half apart. It may be closer or more 
distant. If large trees are desired, a greater distance will 
be advisable ; but if number and not size is the object 
sought, two inches will do, especially if stimulating fertil- 
izers are used. This close planting, however, we do not 
recommend. 

Small lads are usually employed to drop the seed, and 
when clever ones can be obtained, they are preferable to 
men, for the reason that they will do as much work for 
half the money. Besides, the stooping posture they have 
to assume does not tire them so much as it does men. A 
careful man, however, should always be along to cover up 
the seed, and to exercise general control. The seed is 
usually covered with a rake, by drawing the loose 
mold over it, about two inches deep. This should be 
pressed down closely, so as to come in close contact with 
the seed, and afford it aliment from the start. The cov- 
erer may do it by simply walking up the row as he pro- 
ceeds with his task, or it may be slapped down with a 
spade or shovel, or a light roller may be used. And hei'e 
the work of planting the nursery is ended. But should 
the ground be poor, or the season cold and backward, a 
slis^ht diessinor of some active fertilizer should be used. 
Ashes, guano, or any of the popular superphosphates will 



42 PEACH CULTURE. 

do very well. If guano is used, care should be taken to 
reduce it to tlie proper stiength, by mixing with it two 
or three times its bulk of soil. 

This is the approved method of planting a nursery, 
and for nurserymen, is, perhaps, the best of all others, as 
it enables tliem to use every inch of ground, and examine 
every seed. But to the planter who only aims to rear a 
few thousand trees for his own use, we commend the 
following. 

Prepare the ground in all respects as directed in the 
last chapter, but in the fall instead of the spring. Then 
plant your seed — not in the seed-bed, but in the nursery 
rows where you wish them to grow. The manner of 
dropping and covering is the same in both cases. The 
advantages of this method are the following : It is more 
simple, there is no seed-bed, no sawdust or spading in ; 
no cracking of seed in the spring, no covering with damp 
cloths. It is cheaper. The labor of the seed-bed, crack- 
ing, and transporting the seed to the field or nursery is 
all saved. It is usually m^ore convenient, because it is 
done in the fiiU, and after other farm work, wdien the 
ground is in better order, and labor cheaper and more 
easily had. And lastly, it insures a more complete separa- 
tion of the Jcernels from the shells, as the depth below 
the surface is uniform, and the freezing process equal. 
To planters and small nurserymen, we recommend the last 
method whenever it is convenient. When not so, they 
can make their seed-bed in the ordinary way. 



CHAPTER YI. 

NURSERY CULTIVATION. 

The cultivation of the nursery is both easy and simple, 
and, if our directions for selecting and preparing the 
ground have been followed, will be pleasant and gratify- 



NURSERY CULTIVATION. 43 

ing. It is almost identical with that of corn ; and were 
the latter cultivated in drills, would be precisely the same. 

If everything has been well done, and the season favor- 
able, in about two weeks after planting — we now speak 
of spring planting — the young trees or sprouts will be 
thickly set from one end of the row to the other. They 
may be three inches high if the ground is very warm and 
kind, and the sun and rain conducive ; or less, under less 
favorable circumstances. A sharp, light cultivator should 
now be run between the first and third rows, then be- 
tween the second and fourth, but never between adjacent 
rows on the same round; because by doing so you have to 
make short turns, which impose more labor on the plow- 
men, and often injures the trees in the end of the rows 
by the treading of the horse, or bruising with the culti- 
vator. Sometimes a small hai-row will be pi-eferable to 
the cultivator, especially if there are no weeds, and the 
object is simply to stir the ground. A week later this 
should be repeated ; and so continuously, through the 
early half of the season ; afterwards, the dressings may 
be less frequent, or suspended altogether, according as 
the ground is clean and mellow, and the growth rapid, or 
otherwise. 

Should weeds or grass make their appearance amongst 
the trees in the row, they must be promptly hoed or 
pulled up, root and branch ; they have no business there, 
and deserve no mercy. 

Should the season be dry, or the ground stiff, it may be 
necessary to use a small plow occasionally. Immediately 
after, the harrow should follow, so that the clods may be 
broken up and pulverized. 

If the ground has been well prepared, the subsequent 
culture good, and the season favorable, the growth of the 
young trees will be very rapid, and highly gratifying; 
and by the last of August they will have attained a hight 
of four, five, or even six feet, and be quite strong and 



44 PEACH CULTURE. 

stocky. Should they flag, however, during the season, 
they may be stimulated and advanced by the application 
of artificial manures, especially by liquid ones. The last 
should be applied with a watering-can, between sundown 
and dark, directly at the roots of the trees. A very good 
metliod to apply guano or superphosphate, is to run a 
small furrow as near the rows on each side as can be done 
without injury to the roots, throwing it from the trees. 
Then sow the manure in the furrow at the rate of six 
hundred pounds of guano, and a thousand of superphos- 
phate, to the acre. Now reverse the order, and run a 
furrow on the outside of the first, throwing it to the rows. 
In this way the manure will be thoroughly distributed, 
deposited exactly where wanted, and well covered up. 
The subsequent rapid growth of the trees should soon 
give evidence of its powerful effect. 

When the trees have attained such a growth as to shade 
the ground between the rows sufficiently to keep it moist, 
all cultivation should cease. Should Aveeds appear in the 
rows after this, they must be pulled up; but this will 
seldom occur unless foul manure lias been used. 
- It sometimes happens that, through the inexperience or 
carelessness of the seed planters, the young trees come up 
too thick ; when this occurs, the superfluous ones should 
be pulled up. 



CHAPTER Vn. 

BUDS. 

These should also be selected with great care. Hund- 
reds of planters have been sorely disappointed when their 
trees came into bearing to see them turn out a different 
variety from what they had bought them for. Worse 
still, sometimes they buy and pay for the choicest bud- 



BUDS. • 45 

ded fruit, but when the trees begin to bear, they produce, 
instead, small, knotty, natural peaches. Tliis, in most 
cases, occurs through carelessness. As the natural fruit 
is nearly wortliless, and wholly unmarketable, the loss to 
the planter is very great ; and, as several years must 
elapse before a change can be eifected, it is almost irrepar- 
able. The strictest care should, therefore, be exercised in 
selecting buds. They must he true to hind y that is, they 
must certainly be of the variety intended. A mistake in 
this regard would destroy the reputation of a nursery- 
man, and would be a sore disappointment to the planter. 
The best way to insure buds of the kind wanted, is, to get 
them out of the nursery of some well-known nurseryman, 
whose character, as such, is beyond question for skill, care, 
and honesty, and who has been long in the business. This 
last will have given him that extraordinary caution which 
is only the result of experience and previous disappoint- 
ment. Even with all this circumspection, it is possible to 
fail ; but failure will be rare. These disappointments oc- 
cur from various causes. Marks may be lost or mis- 
placed in the rows, or the labels, when the trees are sent 
away from the nursery. A mistake once made is very 
likely to be multiplied and perpetuated, because subse- 
quent budders rely upon what they or their neighbors 
have purchased as a particular variety, and they cannot 
do otherwise unless they can wait until the trees have 
borne, and thus test the matter for themselves. If access 
cannot be had to a nursery, the next best resource is a 
young orchard of the first or second year's growth. The 
buds themselves must be of the current season. 

Some prefer to take buds from hearing orchards, as 
they think it insures the kind. Where the quantity of 
buds wanted is small, and the trees are marked and noted 
while in fruit, this may do very well. But large nursery- 
men will seldom find enough such buds convenient ; they 
will be difficult and tedious to procure ; as a rule, not so 



46 PEACH CULTURE. 

fresh and thrifty; many of them will he fruit, instead of 
leaf, bnds ; and, after all, the risk of obtaining the true 
variety will be found nearly, if not altogether, as great. 
For ourselves, in view of all the circumstances, Ave 
prefer buds taken from a thrifty, vigorous, young 
nursery. 

The buds must be healtJiy. It is unnecessary to 
dwell on this point. No prudent or honest man, 
with the least regard for his own interest or char- 
acter, or his neighbors' rights, would knowingly 
bud from a diseased stock. A trader in plague-in- 
fested clothes or cattle is not so culpable or detestable. 
They must be lecf not fruit, buds. All ex- 
perienced cultivators know that there are two kinds 
of buds formed on the twigs, and that one of these 
produces leaves and the other fruit the next season. 
Now, what the budder wants is leaves and wood, 
not blossoms and fruit, and he must, therefore, be 
careful to get the right kind. The difference is 
easily observed ; but an inexperienced man should 
not trust himself, but rather employ an experienced 
one to make the selections for him. If he is com- 
pelled to do it hims(?lf, he must remember that 
fruit buds are rounder, softer, and more open than 
^^' ■ the leaf buds. The difference between the two 
kinds of buds is shown in fig. 3. The small pointed buds 
are leaf buds, the rounder ones blossom buds, which fre- 
quently occur in pairs, with a leaf-bud between them. 



TWIGS. 47 



TWIGS. 



When the nurser)^ or orchard is selected, the buds are 
taken off in this way: With a sharp knife cut off the 
stron<;est twigs of the present season's growth, about two 
inches from tlic main stem, or, if you prefer it, close to 
the stem. Throv/ them together in little bundles, and 
when 3^ou have as many as you expect to use in the suc- 
ceeding half day, stop, as under ordinary circumstances, 
no more than can be used in half a day Bhould be taken 
off. They are injured by being kept long. Now, gather 
up your bundles, throw them in a heap, and saturate them 
with cold water. This will keep them from shrinking, 
and preserve them fresh and green. But do not stop 
here. Take your knife, which should be as sharp as a 
razor, and cut away every leaf at the distance of about 
half an inch from the twig. This stops the flow of tne 
Bap to the leaf, and keeps it in the bud, thus preserv;"g 
its freshness for a lonorer time. The buds at the lower 
end of the twig are generally smaller, and not so well 
formed as those further up. For this reason it is advisa- 
ble to reject two or three inches of the lower end ; and 
if you have not already done it by cutting the twig from 
the main stock at that distance, do it now by cutting the 
leaves off smooth instead of leaving a half-inch stem, as 
above mentioned. On the other hand, the top buds 
sometimes swell too much, and for this reason the two or 
three nearest the top should be cut away in the same 
manner as those at the bottom. In this way the best 
buds only will be retained, and the success of the bud- 
ding greatly promoted. When the buds, or rather the 
twigs, are thus prepared, they should be placed, buts 
down, in a vessel, usually a bucket of water, and cover- 
ed with a damp cloth. They now go into the hands of 
the budder for immediate use. 



48 PEACH CULTURE. 



BUDS EXPRESSED. 



It sometimes happens that nurserymen, but more fre- 
quently amateurs, wish to send buds of some rare variety 
by mail or express, and, by proper care in packing, they 
may be safely sent Imndreds of miles in this way. 

When this is desired, the buds should, in the first place, 
be taken off and prepared in the manner above described. 
If the distance is not more than two hundred miles, and 
on a railroad, a wrapping of moist moss, with an outer 
coat of thick cloth, Avill be quite sufficient. But if the 
distance be great, the best way is to procure a hollow tin 
cylinder, air-tight, and open at one end, and place the 
buds in this, filling the vessel about half full of buds, 
then fill the interstices with fine, clean sawdust, saturated 
with water. Now put on the cap, and either solder or 
seal it on, so that it will be air-tight. In this way buds 
may be transported five hundred miles or more. The 
vessel should never be filled full, as the buds swell in the 
Dox, and cannot be taken out without injury. 



CHAPTER YIII. 

BUDDING. 

The Budding is done in August and September. The 
lens^th of the season varies, beinij shorter in a northern 
than in a southern latitude. On the Delaware Peninsula 
it is about six weeks from and after the first of August. 
But sometimes it commences sooner, and is prolonged 
even into October. As a rule, budding may begin as 
soon as the buds are large enough to cut from the twig, 
and continue as long as the sap flows freely. Young, 



BUDDING. 49 

vigorous trees keep green a long time, and as long as the 
leaves are green and the sap flowing, may be budded. 
But it is not safe to put it off to the last of the season, 
as a sudden frost or dry cold spell may kill the leaves 
or chill the sap, and thus prevent the bud from forming a 
complete union with the stem in the fall, and if not then 
formed, it never will be afterwards. It is not best to 
commence too early, either, for if the season is warm and 
wet, or much protracted, there is danger that the young 
buds will start to grow, and either burst off or spend their 
strength too soon. Bud-s that start in the fall are not 
likely to do so well. 

BUDDERS. 

Budding is a trade ; and in no department of agricul- 
ture is skilled labor more essential than in this. The 
nurseryman cannot be too careful in the selection of his 
budders. Experimenters, novices, bunglers, are all to be 
rejected without hesitation. They are dear at any price. 
Too dear if they would work for nothing and board them- 
selves. The reason is obvious. If the buds do not tahe^ 
you lose not only the budders' wages, but you lose the 
trees themselves. They can only be successfully budded 
the first year of their growth, and if you fail then, you 
fail altogether. Hence the importance of securing skilled 
labor in this department — expert budders, who will do 
their work well. In almost every community there are 
pretenders, who, on all occasions, are ready to offer their 
services to do anything and everything that may be re- 
quired. They make loud professions of their knowledge 
and ability to give satisfaction. In nine cases out of 
ten they are quacks, without knowledge, experience, 
or skill, and no man who understands his business will 
employ or countenance them. The reason tliat good 
ones are so rare is, that, except in a few localities, peach 
3 



50 PEAOH CULTURE. 

growing is a recent enterprise, and there has not been 
time to raise up and instruct men for this special depart- 
ment. It is believed that in New Jersey alone, where 
peaches have long been a staple, can intelligent and skill- 
ful budders be found in sufficient numbers to bud large 
nurseries in proper season. We know that in Delaware, 
where peach growing has been prosecuted with great 
energy and success for the last ten or twelve years, bud- 
ders are still imported from New Jersey, and their skill 
and speed are of the first order. 

They aie usually paid by the thousand, and at the rate 
of two dollars and fifty cents or three dollars, and board. 
This does not include auxiliary help, Avhich is an addi- 
tional charge of about equal amount. 



TIES. 



These are made of common bass-wood matting, such as 
usually comes around furniture and other articles, and the 
planter or nurseryman can often procure all he wants, 
second-hand, at the stores for a trifle, and this does very 
well. If not, he can get it new at any of the seed or agri- 
cultural stores in the cities or large towns for a small sum. 
When received, it should be cut into strands about a foot 
long, and ripped into pieces about half an inch wide. It 
should be then tied, with a few pieces of the same, into 
hanks or bundles of one, two, three, four, or five hundred 
strands, as the tyer may desire. 

BUDS. 

The buds, as before stated, are procured from budded 
nurseries or young orchards. In the former, the young 
trees are always full of thrifty, vigorous laterals, and 
from these the buds are taken. The best size for these 
twigs is the thickness of a full-sized goose-quill. 



BUDDING. 



51 



Each budder is furnished with two assistants. Intelli- 
gent lads, of ten or twelve years, make very good assist- 
ants after a little instruction and experience. One is 
called a stripper, the other a tyer. The stripper goes be- 
fore the budder, and strips or rubs off all the leaves and 
small shoots of the trees for a distance of six inches above 
the ground. Sometimes, especially late in the season, 
the shoots have to be cut oif with a sharp knife. This 
clears the way for the budder, and enables him to 
proceed with ease and dispatch. The budding now com- 
mences thus : The budder is provided with a very sharp 
instrument, called a budding-knife (fig. 4), made espe- 
cially for the pur- 
pose ; with this he 
Fijr. 4.— BUDDiNG-KAiFE. uiakcs a vertical 




incision in the young tree, about an inch and a half long, 
and a transverse one at ria:ht ano^les with it. It is 
made with great rapidity, and in this manner: The knife 
is inserted at the lower end of the slit, drawn up the de- 
sired length, then, with a slight twist of the hand, right 
and left, the transverse cut is made, and the edges of the 
bark at the same time loos- 
ened so as to readily admit 
the bud, as in fig. 5. These 
incisions are clear through 
the bark, and slightly into 
the wood. The bud (fig. 6) 
is now cut from the cion 
and immediately inserted, 
as shown in fig. 7. The 
budder has now done his 
part, and proceeds to an- 
other, and so on, with 
great rapidity. Some ex- 
pert budders will bud two thousand five hundred trees 
in a day ; fifteen hundred, for a skillful hand, is not re- 




Fig. 5. — INCISION. Fig-. 6.— BUD. 
Fi^. 7. — BUD INSERTED. 



52 



PEACH CULTURE. 




garded as a great day's work ; and some have even ex- 
ceeded three thousand, so expert do they become by 
practice. Nor is it poorly done ; on the contrary, we 
have always found the speediest hands the most successful 
in obtaining adhesion and growth. 

The tyer now follows with liis hank of ties, and, taking 
one between his thumb and fingers, he places the center 
of it firmly just below the eye of the bud, 
passes the ends rapidly round the stock in op- 
posite directions, brings them back above the 
eye of the bud, and ties them. Figure 8 
shows the bud as tied in this manner. Another 
method is for the tyer to place himself on the 
opposite side of the bud, but place the tie as 
before, pass it clear round, and back to the side 
opposite the bud, and tie it there, as in fig. 9. 
By this method the tie makes a half circle more 
Fig. 8. than by the former, and the knot, instead of be- 
ing over the bud, is opposite to it. Some prefer this, as they 
insist that it holds the bud more firmly, and that when 
the ties have to be cut, there will be less risk to the bud. 
But if the tie be good, and the knot skill- 
fully made, the bud will be well held in 
position by the first method. Indeed, we 
are not sure but that it will be quite as firmly 
held as by the second, inasmuch as the knot 
will be over the bud, and thus bear 
stronger vipon it, afibrding greater protec- 
tion and support ; and, as for the cutting, 
this can and should be done at the op- 
posite side from the bud, in either case. 
Besides, when the tyer is on the same side 
as the bud, he can see exactly where to place the tie, 
which he cannot always do in the other method. The 
budding is now complete. 




Fig;. 9. 



BUDDING. 53 

SLIPPING AND QUILLING. 

Slipping the bud or bark is a very common expression 
among budders. It occurs in the act of taking the bud 
from the stem. In cutting the bud from tlie stem a small 
piece of the wood is usually removed witli it. But when 
the bark is flowing freely, budders only cut through the 
bark, and then, with their thumb and finger, peel or slip 
the bud, without any wood, from the stem, and this is 
called dipping the bud. It is speedier than the other 
method, and quite as good, as there is no need whatever 
of any wood with the bud. 

Quilling^ on the other hand, occurs when the flow of 
sap is deficient, and the bark begins to tighten on the 
stock that is budded. The budder then provides himself 
with a goose-quill, cuts away about half the barrel as for a 
pen, but, instead of p>ointing the side he retains, only 
rounds it ofl* in the form of a semicircle. This he inserts 
in the bark of the stock, at the intersection of the verti- 
cal and transverse incisions, heretofore described, and 
slips it down between the bark and the wood a sufiicient 
distance to admit the bud. And this is call quilling. In- 
stead, however, of using a quill, the budding-knife is 
now provided with a horn or bone point on the opposite 
end to the knife proper, which answers the purj)ose of 
the old quill, and is more convenient. 

When the rows run north and south, the buds should 
be put in on the west side; when east and west, on the 
north side. This will enable them the better to resist the 
north and west winds the next season, when the young, 
tender budded stock, full of sap and foliage, is easily 
parted from the stem, but capable of much greater re- 
sistance when tlie pressure is towards the stem, than /rom 
it. The proper place to insert the bud is about one and a 
half or two inches above the ground ; the nearer the 
ground the better. 



54 PEACH CULTURK 

MARKING. 

This is an important, although an oft-neglected or ill- 
performed, part of the Avork, On it, however, depends 
the reputation of the nurseryman as well as the success 
and satisfaction of the planter. Every precaution should 
be taken to insure comj^lete certainty of the kind in each 
row. Having had but one kind of buds on hand at a 
time, and after throwing away whatever of that kind may 
be left, when all wanted have been budded, the next thing 
is to properly and permanently distinguish and designate 
the particular variety in each row. We know of no bet- 
ter way than this: Procure at the saw-mill or lumber-yard 
a sufficient quantity of what is commonly called shin- 
gling lath, — oak is best, but any kind of wood will do. 
The stakes are to be three feet long, and the lath, for the 
Bake of economy, should be twelve feet long, which is a 
very common and desirable length. It should be from 
two and a half to three inches wide, and from three- 
quarters of an inch to one inch thick, but these dimen- 
sions are not essential. When the lath has been sawed 
into pieces three feet long, and pointed at one end so as 
to be easily driven into the ground, one of the faces of 
each piece should be either shaved or planed smooth, a 
distance of one foot from the top, in order that it may be 
the better marked at the proper time. The stakes may 
now be marked altogether, or they may be marked as 
they are set in the ground. We prefer the former, 
for the reason that it can be the better done, and may 
then be done by one man ; and the proprietor himself, 
or a reliable overseer, should attend to this in person, 
and not leave it to careless or uninterested persons. It 
may be well done with red lead, or a heavy black lead 
pencil, or with paint or printers' ink. The aim should 
be to obtain a clear and permanent mark; one that can 
be easily read, and one that will not fade. 



BUDDING. 55 

The mark itself may be of two kinds. The one is by- 
writing the names of the variety in large, plain letters on 
the stake, and the otiier is by writing numbers thereon 
in the same way ; and when this is done, by entering the 
numbers in a book, with the varieties opposite. By the 
first method the variety can always be told on the ground 
by anybody by simple inspection ; by the second, no one 
can tell except he who has the book, nor can he often do 
it without the book. Some prefer one method, and some 
another, and for various reasons. We advise a combina- 
tion of botli. First, let the stakes be distinctly marked 
with the name of the variety, then let the first row be 
marked in a book N'o. 1, with the variety in it, and so 
on of the rest. In this way, if the stakes should be lost, 
or removed, the nurseryman would still have the means 
of telling what variety he had in every row, and would 
not be entirely dependent on either the stakes or numbers. 

The first stake should be set at the south end of the 
west row, where the rows rim north and south, and at 
the west end of the north row, where they run east and 
west ; and the rows should be numbered from west to 
east, or from north to south. 

As soon as the first bud is inserted, the first stake 
should be set with name or number facing towards the 
row, and not from it, as is in some places the fashion, 
and when budding of that variety ends, another stake, 
with the same variety and number, should be immediately 
set beyond the last bud, and facing the first stake. And 
now another stake, with the name or number of the next 
variety, should be set with its back to the back of tlie 
last stake, if the varieties end anywhere except at the 
end of the row. This method should be repeated with 
each variety until all are budded, and if this be done, it will 
be almost impossible to confuse the varieties. A flat stake, 
without name or number, may be driven between the two 



^^ PEACH CULTURE. 

Other stakes for greater caution, in case of the fading of 
the marks or accident to the stakes themselves. 

Whenever convenient, it is advisable never to bud a 
row with more than one variety. 



CHAPTER IX. 

CULTIVATION OF BUDS. 

In about two weeks after budding, the buds should be 
examined. Those that have taken will have a lively green 
appearance, especially towards tlie center, while those 
that have not taken, will be slirunken at the edges, and 
of a brown hue. They will also have shed the leaf-stem, 
while those that have not taken Avill still retain it. Ninety 
per cent should be living, and where the conditions have 
been favorable, nearly all. Wlien the time is proper, the 
buds fresh, and the budder skillful, there is no necessity 
for losing a single bud ; and very few, in fact, are lost. 
If it is discovered, in this examination, that some have 
not taken, and the season is not too fir advanced, they 
may be re-budded. 

Another object of the examination is, to see if the ties 
are cvtting the buds. This occurs when the tie has been 
tightly drawn, the union prompt and complete, and the 
growth rapid. The tie should now be cut. This is ef- 
fected by a single stroke of a sharp knife, drawn across 
the tie on the opposite side to the bud, and at an acute 
angle with the stem of the young tree. If the nursery- 
man prefers to loosen the tie, he will di-awthe loop of the 
knot when it has been so tied ; if tied in a hard knot, he 
will have to undo the last draw. This is tedious, and 



CULTIVATION OF BUDS. 57 

large growers very seldom resort to it ; when it is ex- 
pected to be used, the knots should all be loop. But the 
process of budding peaches is so easy when done by skil- 
ful hands, and in proper season, that a slight band, and that 
only for a short time, is all that is necessary. We have 
even known them to take and do well without being tied 
at all. To neglect this precaution, however, is neither ju- 
dicious nor safe. But when the work is done late, or 
any other unfavorable incident intervenes, the tying is 
highly important, and the manner in which it is done 
may greatly tend to insure success or promote defeat. 

It may be found, on examination, that some of the 
bands have been burst. This occurs where the band has 
been weak and the groAvth rapid. In such cases no 
further attention is necessary. The buds will take care 
of themselves. In some cases the bands will be found to 
have cut into the bark, owing to their strength and tight- 
ness, and the rapid growth of the bud. Here the bands 
should be immediately cut. 

This examination should be repeated ten days or a fort- 
night later, unless further growth has been checked by 
early frosts or cold, dry weather, when it will be un- 
necessary. The treatment should be precisely as before, 
with this addition ; that where it is apparent the bud 
has taken well, the band should be cut ; but when this is 
doubtful, or it is plain the union is slight, the bands should 
be left until the sap begins to flow the next spring, as 
the freezing and thawing of winter greatly tends to 
throw off buds that are not fairly joined to the stems, and 
the band is of o^reat service in maintainino; their close 
union with them. Kothing more is required until the 
next spring, when all remaining bands should be cut on 
the first start of the sap. 

In the spring, and as soon as the sap begins to flow 
freely, the natural stocks must be cut away just above 
the bud. It must not be done too early, as there is dan- 
3* 



58 PEACH CULTURE. 

ger then that the warm sun in the daytime, and the cold 
frosts at night will so dry and harden the stump, as to 
obstruct the flow of saj) to the top altogether, and thus 
kill the bud by drying up the bark and cutting ofi" its 
aliment. This sometimes happens, and is more likely to 
occur in large, thrifty stocks than small ones. 

Neither must it be deferred too long ; as, in that case, 
the sap will be drawn rapidly from the roots by the large 
surface of the limbs and buds ; a direct current will be 
established between the root and the top ; the bud, which 
is one side of this current, will receive but little, and will 
be retarded in its after growth, if not dwarfed altogether. 
Besides, when cut late, numerous suckers will be thrown 
up from the stem, and sometimes even from the roots. 

If the cutting is done at the proper time, just after the 
sap begins to flow continuously, the bud will draw nutri- 
ment immediately from the root, and make very rapid 
and satisfactory growth. 

THE CUTTING. 

Cutting is done in this way. Take a common bill-hooked 
pruning-knife, as sharp as it can be made. It should cut 
as smooth as a razor. A dull knife is abominable, but a 
sharp one the delight of the operator. It should be 
sharp, because the work can be done faster, better, and 
with more satisfaction. If it is dull, there is more or less 
danger of loosening the bark around the edge of the 
stump, and thus endangering the life or thrift of the bud. 

The operator, being provided with his sharp knife, be- 
gins at the south end of the west row, or the west end 
of the south row, according as they have been planted 
north and south, or east and west. Placing himself on 
the same side of the row with the bud, he seizes the first 
tree, bends it slightly towards him, which facilitates the 
excision, and inserting the edge of the knife on a level 



CULTIVATION OF BIDS. 59 

with, or slightly below the lower end of the bud, draws 
it, with a rapid motion towards him, in an upward di- 
rection, and at an angle of about forty-five or fifty de- 
grees, leaving from a quarter to a half inch of the stump 
above the bud. This is a very speedy work, a single 
good hand being able to dispatch five thousand in a day. 
As soon as it is clearly ascertained what buds have not 
taken, the stumps should be immediately taken up with 
the spade. If this is not done, they will send up suckers 
which will grow rapidly, take the room and aliment that 
should be reserved solely for the young buds that have 
taken, and interfere with the cultivation. Besides this, 
if great care be not exercised in taking up the trees in 
the fall or spring succeeding, they will be mixed in with 
the stock of budded ones, and thus destroy its purity, and 
injure both its sale, and the reputation of the vender. 

RUBBING OFF BUDS. 

In two or three weeks after the topping takes place, and 
even sooner, if the growth has been rapid, all the natural 
buds below the cion must be rubbed off*. This is readily 
done with the hand, if performed in proper season. The 
process is repeated a week or two later, as the supera- 
bundant sap is continually forcing out new ones. The 
object of rubbing is to destroy the natural, and stimulate 
the artificial, buds. At first the union is so slight and 
the flow of sap so abundant, that there is a strong and 
constant effort of nature to furnish new stems to sup- 
ply the loss of the one cut away ; but as the leaves of 
the inserted bud begin to develop themselves, and the 
bud itself to assume the form of the exscinded stem, this 
effort is directed into the new channel, and the tendency to 
throw off" new shoots is greatly weakened. Two or three 
rubbings will generally be sufficient, but, from the tardy 
growth of the artificial, bud, or the great strength of the 



60 PEACH CULTURE. 

roots, more may sometimes be necessary. The observant 
planter Avill be able to decide this without difficulty ; and 
to the practical nurseryman, further directions on this 
point would be superfluous. The object of leaving a 
natural bud above the artificial one is, to assist in carry- 
ing the sap above the latter ; but after the first rubbing 
this will hardly be needful ; and at the second operation, 
all natural buds may, as a general rule, be removed. 

TILLAGE. 

The ground should be kept free from weeds, and loose 
and friable. This can usually be accomplislied by running 
the cultivator up and down between the rows. The judg- 
ment of the planter will direct him how frequently this 
should be done. If the ground has been such as we have 
advised, two or three times during the entire season, may 
be sufficient ; but one thing we w^ill say, it cannot be done 
too often if the cultivator looks only to the growth of 
the trees ; and were we to give one general rule, we 
should say once a week, throughout the season. 

MANURE. 

If the growth of the tree is not satisfactory, it may be 
promoted greatly by stimulating manures, either liquid or 
solid. Liquid may be made by dissolvhig guano or hen 
manure in an old barrel or hogshead, and applied, by a 
common watering-pot directly to the neck of the tree. 
Guano or other concentrated manures can be applied 
with almost immediate efi'ect by running a furrow on 
each side with a light plow, very near the row, throwing 
it from the row, then depositing the guano with the hand 
or hand-drill in the bottom of the furrow. Cover it by 
running another furrow around the row, throwing the 
furrow this time towards the row. In this way the young 
trees will reap nearly the entire benefit of the manure 
during the single season of their growth in the nursery. 



CULTIVATION OF BUDS. 61 

The quantity of guano will vary according as the quality 
of the ground or character of the season varies, or as the 
desire to have larger or smaller trees varies. Six hundred 
pounds per acre will be sufficient in almost any instance, 
and sometimes too much. 

PRUNING. 

As the young tree usually forms a single upright, 
straight, and handsome stem, pruning is not essential. 
Still it may sometimes be done with advantage. Espe- 
cially Avill this be the case where the distance between 
the trees has been increased by failure of buds or otlier 
cause, thus giving them a tendency to throw out lateral 
branches ; and if not done too early, it will generally be 
beneficial. The advantage consists in confining the sap 
within narrower bounds, and thus increasing the size 
and height of the main stem, and also causing the wood 
to mature earlier. The last is of considerable importance, 
especially in northern localities, where it is often difficult 
to obtain wood that will stand the next Avinter's freezinsr. 

The pruning may be done any time between the middle 
of July and the middle of September, and will vary a 
little in different latitudes. If done before the middle of 
July, the succeeding growth will be so great as to par- 
tially neutralize the effect ; while, if deferred beyond the 
middle of September, it will be so little as to be of small 
advantage. But, as before remarked, much will depend 
upon the particular latitude, and something will depend 
upon topographical and other specific causes. In pruning, 
it is not generally advisable to cut away the limbs more 
than to the height of two feet from the ground. If the 
trees are large, three feet may not be too much ; and if 
small, one may be enough. From one-third to one-half 
the length of the tree will usually afford a safe rule ; one- 
third, if the pruning be done early in the season, and 
one-half, if late. 



62 PEACH CULTURE. 



CHAPTER X. 

TAKING UP AND SENDING TO MARKET. 

Peach trees must be set in the orchard at one year's 
growth from the bud, that is, the fall or spring after the 
natural stock has been cut off, as described in the last 
chapter. The progressive steps are these. Make the 
seed-bed in the fall, the next spring plant the seed in the 
nursery, the fall of the same year, bud ; the next spring, 
top, and the next fall or spring, plant the trees in the 
orchard. They will then be two-year-old from the seed, 
and one year from the bud. 

With extensive nurserymen the fall and spring, but 
especially the former, are busy times. Traveling and 
local agents, as well as many immediate customers, have 
been sending in, and are still continuing to send in their 
orders. These have all to be numbered and entered in the 
nursery order-book, and each compared and verified in 
order to prevent mistakes. Labels have to be procured 
and prepared, so that they may be at hand when wanted. 
Boxes for packing, or, if the nurseryman makes his own 
boxes, the material for them ; boards, lath, or scantling, 
hoop-iron, nails, chaff, and straw, as well as saws, ham- 
mers, etc. 

When these are all provided, and the hands engaged, 
the nurseryman awaits the proper season to commence 
work. When it comes it is a busy time, for all orders 
have to be filled, and all shipments made within a few 
weeks, and these may be curtailed by the early approach 
of winter, which suspends all operations. The time to 
commence taking up trees varies as the latitude. In the 
North it will be much earlier than at the South. At 



TAKING UP AND SENDING TO MARKET. 63 

Rochester, New York, the first of October will be found 
about the average, while at Dover, Delaware, it will be 
four weeks later. The true criterion in any place is when 
the leaves will rub off the trees by the hand. But it will 
not always do to wait even so long; for if the season 
has been wet and warm, the young trees will continue to 
grow and hold their leayes until the winter sets in. 

When the season has arrived, a shanty or tent of loose 
boards is erected on the edge of the nursery. Here are 
the head-quarters for the time being. Here are deposited 
the materials, the tools, labels, etc., and from here issue 
the orders to the workmen, and here the trees are brought 
to be labeled, packed, and marked. 

On the morning the work begins, the foremen who 
have been selected and engaged to do the work, and they 
always should be and mostly are, expert, careful men, re- 
pair to the tent for instructions. The proprietor or over- 
seer now opens his order-book at the first page, and reads, 
— "Fifteen hundred Hale's Early;" "Five hundred Early 
York," etc., imtil he goes through the order. While he 
is reading, the foreman or leader has been taking down 
the names and numbers on a small memorandum book for 
the purpose. When the overseer is through reading, the 
foreman has them all down, and immediately commences 
repeating the order from the beginning, while the overseer 
is carefully watching to see that it is exact. Being found 
BO, the foreman proceeds to the nursery, followed by his 
assistants, where the requisite number of each variety is 
carefully taken up with the spade, and left lying in their 
respective rows, if to be bundled and tied by the same 
hands ; but if other hands follow, then they are tied by 
the latter in bundles and labeled. If the same men who 
take up are to bundle, then the trees are all taken up first, 
and when this is done, bundled in the same way. The 
label consists of a small piece of light wood, about an 



64 



PEACH C'ULTLRE. 



inch wide, and four inches long, upon which the name of 
the variety is plainly written in letters, and the number 
of trees in the bundle in figures, thus, " Hale's Early, 25." 
Until recently all nursery stock was taken up with the 
spade ; but latterly, an implement, called a " Tree Digging 
Plow," has been invented, and, among large nurserymen, 




Fig. 10.— TREE DIGGING PLOW. 

entirely supersedes the old method. It is constructed with 
two beams, one to run on each side of the row of trees, two 
sets of handles, and a peculiar share, much in shape like 
the letter U. This share is very sharp ; the horizontal 
part runs under, and the vertical ones on each side of the 
trees, and the roots are thus smoothly cut off, both verti- 
cally and laterally, while the trees themselves remain 
standing, and may be taken up by the hand at pleasure. 
The plow is propelled by four horses, two on each side of 
the row, harnessed tandem, and guided by two plowmen, 
one on each side. With this plow and equipment, ten 
thousand trees may be prepared in a single day. But the 
saving of labor is not the only advantage. The roots are 
never broken, and need no pruning. Besides, the neces- 
sity of heeling-in is obviated, as the trees may be taken 
out at any time, either the same fall or the next spring, 
without further expense or trouble. 



TAKING UP AND SENDING TO MARKET. 65 

The bundles are usually tied with strong twine in sev- 
eral places, and the label is secured to the twine by a 
small wire, passing through or around the end thereof, 
and fastened to the twdne by slipping one strand under, 
and the other above the twine, and twisting the ends to- 
gether. Ordinary iron wire will answer for this purpose ; 
but copper wire, being more ductile, and less liable to 
rust, is preferable, and is now mostly used by our large 
nurserymen. 

When the bundles have been thus made up, they are 
brought to the shanty to be inspected and verified with 
the recorded order. Each variety is placed on a pile by 
itself, and the overseer then reads, as before, " Fifteen 
hundred Hale's Early, — five hundred Early York," etc. 
The varieties and numbers being found to correspond with 
the order, the bundles are now carefully packed ; and this 
is done in two ways. If the trees are to be sent a great 
distance, it is usual and preferable to pack in large boxes. 
These are made of boards of the cheapest material, and 
of various widths, in order to facilitate boxing. The 
length is usually eight or nine feet, the breadth and depth 
thirty-six to forty inches. The thickness of the boards is 
usually three-quarter inch for sides, and one inch for ends. 

In order to support and strengthen the boxes still 
further, it is usual and indeed necessary, to put several 
bands of hoop-iron clear around them. In this w\ay they 
will carry safely any distance. When the boxes are 
ready, the packer puts some old straw, hay, or other soft 
substance, light and capable of retaining moisture, in the 
bottom of the box. He then lays a bundle of trees in, 
wdth the roots towards the end, and another bundle 
with the roots towards the opposite end, and so on, 
until the box is full. In this way the tops overlap, 
so that the tliickness of the mass is nearly uniform 
throughout — the length of the box being guaged so as 
to effectuate this as nearly as may be. When the box 



66 PEACH CULTURE. 

is full, more straw is stuffed in along the sides of the box, 
and some placed on the top, then tlie lid is put on and 
nailed fast, the hoops also, and the trees are boxed. 
The name and address of the consignee is then painted 
or stenciled in large letters on the lid of the box; and, if 
not to be transported by the ordinary route, the special 
line or way is to be indicated by smaller letters in the 
border, as " Via Norfolk," " Citizens' Line," " Steamer 
Belle Mary," and so on. This latter direction is usually 
that of the consignee ; as the shipper, unless special orders 
be given, will ship by the ordinary line, and without any 
special directions whatever, thus : 

Henky Wilmer, 

Wilmington^ 

N. C. 

This is sufficient, as the goods will be delivered by 
one transportation company to another, until they reach 
their destination. 

The other method of packing is in bundles. To pack 
in bundles, you must be piovided with matting, moss, 
straw and twine. The matting is cut into squares of 
various sizes to suit the size of the bundles. It is spread 
on the ground and covered several inches deep with damp 
moss, rotten straw or hay. The trees tied in bundles, as 
before described, are now brought and set upright on the 
moss-covered matting. Four bundles, one hundred trees, 
are as many as it is advisable to put into one package. 
When thus set, the corners of the matting are drawn up 
closely around the trees ; some more moss placed around 
the roots if needful, and the whole tightly tied with strong 
twine, passed round and round and knotted, until it is 
completely secured. The bundle is then further protect- 
ed by being thatched with long rye-straw, firmly tied 
with twine. The straw is some times put on before the 
matting is tied, and the latter drawn up over the lower 



TAKING UP AND SENDING TO MARKET. 67 

end of the straw ; and some times the matting is first 
fastened as above described, and the straw thatch placed 
on afterwards. 

When the boxes and bundles are thus prepared, they 
are hauled to the station or landing to be shipped. Here 
they are weighed, and the weight marked in pounds. 
When delivered to the transporters, duplicate bills of 
lading are made out, signed and delivered to the shipper. 
When this is received at the shanty or office, the or- 
der is marked, " filled October 20th, 1869, and goods ship- 
ped by P. W. & B. R R." The trees are then charged in 
the journal, a bill made out unless already paid for, and 
it, together with one of the bills of lading, mailed to the 
consignee, and the transaction is complete, so far as the 
nursery is concerned. If they are not paid, lawyers 
suits, commissions, and reductions of profits will follow; 
but we do not propose to speak of this rather piquant 
and practical feature of the business. 

The subsequent work is but a repetition or continuation 
of what we have described ; and it is unnecessary to pur- 
sue it further. 

It seldom happens that, all the stock is got off in the 
Fall. The trees that remain, are either left in the rows 
as they grow, or taken up marked, and heeled-in. 
The heeling -in is done, by digging a trench, on some suit- 
able, dry spot, free from roots and stones, about three feet 
wide, two deep, and as long as may be necessary to con- 
tain the trees. The trench should, if convenient, run 
north-east and south-west. The dirt should be thrown on 
the north-west side. The trees should then be placed in 
the trench, in a leaning posture with the tops towards the 
south-east. The dirt should now be shovelled in and 
closely packed, both to keep the roots in a natural state, 
and also to leave no lurking place for mice or moles. 
When the trench is full, the residue of the dirt should be 
banked up against the trees and on them from the north- 



68 PEACH CULTURE. 

west side. This Avill shield them from the cold blasts of 
winter, and keep them in good condition until wanted 
the next spring. They may be still further protected by 
throwing over them, small branches of pine or other ever- 
green, bagasse, corn-stalks, or straw. The freer from seed 
or grain the better, as that, sometimes attracts the mice 
and other vermin, which often injure the trees. Here 
they should remain until wanted for shipment or planting 
the next spring. 



CHAPTER XI. 

SELECTING A SITE FOR AN ORCHARD. 

The first step, after the planter has either reared or 
purchased his trees, is the selection of a site for his or- 
chard. At first view this seems very simple ; but to in- 
sure satisfaction several things are to be considered. 

As the young wood and fruit buds often suffer from the 
piercing blasts of winter, a spot that is sheltered from 
these is much to be desired. And, as they usually come 
from the north and north-west, a site on the south, or 
south-east, of a wood or hill, is, other things being equal, 
greatly to be preferred. And if a cove or valley can be 
found, surrounded on all sides by high lands, so much 
the better. But, except in a hilly country, sites of this 
kind cannot be found. But their value can hardly be 
overestimated ; and the possession of such a one has 
sometimes made the fortune of its owner. We will give 
an instance or two. On the Alleghany river, thirty-six 
miles above Pittsburg, resides Mr. Thomas Logan, whose 
success in raising fine fruit, especially apples, is famous. 
His land is good, but not better than that of many of his 
neighbors ; his culture is good, but not better than some 



SELECTING A SITE FOR AN ORCHARD. 69 

others in the vicinity ; yet his success is far greater than 
any others. Indeed, he scarcely ever fails, and it is at- 
tributed to this cause — his orchard is surrounded by 
high hills. On the north, they rise several hundred 
feet, but are a mile or more in the distance ; on the east, 
they are not quite so high, but approach nearer ; on the 
south, they are nearly as high as on the north, and about 
the same distance ; and on the west, they are not more than 
fifty or sixty feet high, but covered with timber. Between 
these flows the river, not in a straight line, but first to 
the south-west, then to the south-east, and then back 
again to the south-west. By this peculiar topographical 
position, the wind has no direct sweep on the farm. What 
is more remarkable still, and goes even further to prove 
that Mr. Logan's success is owing to position, and not 
cultivation or other cause, is the fact, that on the fourth 
of June, A. D., 1859, a remarkable frost occurred, which 
killed not only the fruit, but the wheat and rye, and even 
the leaves of the trees, in all that section of the country. 
Yet Mr. Logan had sixty acres of wheat, which was not 
even injured. 

Many similar instances, but not jierhaps so remarkable, 
have come under our own observation. The cases of 
trees in towns protected by houses and walls, are famil- 
iar. It seems plain, therefore, that the topography of a 
place has much to do with the success or failure of an or- 
chard. But it is equally evident, that favorable locations, 
such as we have described, are very rare. Proximity to 
a body of water is supposed by some to be a favorable 
circumstance ; and some remarkable results are referred 
to in support of this opinion. It is, no doubt true, that the 
proximity of a bay, lake or large river materially allevi- 
ates the severity of winter ; and often prevents the inju- 
rious effects of late frosts in the spring. These beneficial 
results, however, are sometimes impaired, or entirely 
neutralized, by counteracting ones ; and especially in the 



70 PEACH CULTURE. 

case of peaches. The peach is a tender and delicate fruit, 
ripens almost in a day and j^erishes in another, if not 
eaten or preserved. It is exceedingly susceptible to at- 
mospheric influences, and thousands of baskets have 
perished on the trees in consequence of one warm wet 
day. This was the case in Delaware, in 1867, when the 
fruit rotted on the trees by car loads, for tlie want of dry 
air and sunshine. 

Now it has been found that orchards near water are 
more exposed to this danger than others. Hence, it is 
difficult to say whether or not it is advisable to select a 
site on the margin of a water. The advantages seem to 
be nearly equally balanced ; and the preponderance will, 
perhaps, be generally determined by other considera- 
tions. In former years, sites on the north sides of hills 
were considered best by many, inasmuch as the ground 
remained frozen much longer in the spring, thus retarding 
the blooming of the blossoms until after severe frosts, 
which it undoubtedly did. But closer and longer experi- 
ence and obser\ ation have satisfied planters that there is 
more danger from winter killin(j^ while the germ is her- 
metically folded in its flower leaves, than from spring 
frosts. Hence, that it is more important to obtain a 
shelter from the northern blasts of winter, than from the 
late frosts of spring. 

SOIL. 

The character of the soil must not be overlooked. 
Much will depend upon this, in general, but especially in 
the culture and growth of the young trees. After the 
orchard is established and in bearing, the difference will 
not be so material. Along the whole Delaware Peninsula, 
from Cape Charles, on the south, to the Delaware and 
Chesapeake Canal on the north, the soil is so peculiarly 
conducive to the production of the peach in all its rich 
luxuriousness, that it is difficult to make a mistake in the 



SELECTING A SITE FOR AN ORCHARD. 71 

soil. Here, perhaps, the only thing to be studiously avoid- 
ed, is the low lands. Land that holds water is unfit for 
fruit of any kind, but especially so for peaches. Avoid- 
ing this, the cultivator can scarcely go wrong within the 
limits mentioned. 

In general, any soil that is well adapted to corn is good 
for peaches. But a light, sandy loam is best. Quick 
growth and rapid maturity, both of tree and fruit, are the 
characteristics of the peach ; and a light, warm soil is a 
necessary element in their production. The lighter tiie 
soil, the earlier will the tree bear and the fruit ripen, and 
the sooner will both fail. 

THE FIELD. 

It is usual to plant an entire field, and often several. 
As every planter wishes his plantation or farm to present 
a handsome appearance to the public road or street, he 
will, when selecting a site for an orchard, have regard to 
this, and select a spot that will gratify this commendable 
desire. Now, although orchards are very pretty in them- 
selves, yet, as they hide every thing beyond them, it is 
usually judicious to place them in the rear, where they 
form a handsome background to a stately mansion and 
beautiful lawn, flanked by waving fields of golden grain 
and fragrant clover. Besides, as a general rule, they are 
less exposed to depredations than when in front. 

SHAPE. 

Some regard should also be had to the shape of the 
field to be planted. A long strip, or angular piece, 
should be avoided, unless it is all the land on one side of 
a road, or pi'operly rounds off another orchard. Orchards 
planted in squares, other things being equal, look best, 
and are most convenient. 



12 PEACH CULTURE. 



CHAPTER XIL 
PLANTING AN ORCHARD. 

After the selection, the preparation of the ground is 
naturally the next thing in order. This is quite simple, 
but often neglected. If there are any stumps, roots, or 
Btones, they should be removed. If left they will interfere 
with the comfortable cultivation of the orchard, and may 
some day injure a tree. An orchard may be planted after 
any crop, but corn stubble is, perhaps, a preferable ground. 
If taste and neatness are to control, the ground will be 
carefully plowed, harrowed, and rolled. But when hun- 
dreds of trees are to be set in a short time, and speed and 
economy are important objects, all this is seldom done. 
It is quite common to do nothing more than plow the 
ground. Even this is sometimes omitted ; and that, too, 
without materially impairing the success of the job. 
When the ground is not even plowed, it is prepared in 
one of these two ways. 

A beginning is made by running a furrow, at the dis- 
tance of twenty feet, say, from the fence, in the direction 
the first row is to run ; and another, and another, at the 
same distance ap;irt, until the ground has been gone 
over. Cross furrows are then run at right angles with the 
former, and at the same distances. The trees are planted 
at the intersections. 

The other way is very similar; the only material differ- 
ence being, that instead of forming single furrows the first 
time, a double one is run, and a ridge formed by throw- 
ing two together. In order to do this accurately, begin 
on the east side of the field to be planted, and run the 
first furrow from north to south, nineteen feet from the 



PLANTING AN ORCHARD. 73 

fence ; when at the south end, turn to the right., and run 
back to the place of starting at the distance of twenty' 
one feet from the fence. By so doing, the two furrows 
will be thrown tocrether, and the center of the rid ore 
formed by these two furrows will be twenty feet from the 
fence, the distance designed for the first row of trees. 
Another ridge twenty feet to the west of that will now 
be formed in the same way, and so on until the requisite 
number has been made. If a beginning be made on the 
west side of the field, the process will be the same, ex- 
cept that the first furrow will be twenty-one and the 
second nineteen feet from the fence, reversing the first 
order, but producing the same result. When these ridges 
have been made, the cross furrows are also run in two 
ways. The first is simply single furrows run at right 
angles with the ridges, and twenty feet apart. The 
other is to run two furrows, one nineteen and the other 
twenty-one feet from the fence, throwing the mold in op- 
posite directions ; and thus forming the ridges into squares 
whose sides are two feet. In the center of these squares, 
the trees are planted. It is easily seen that by this meth- 
od a dry seat is obtained for the young tree, as it is 
drained on all sides, which is the only advantage. In 
fall planting, especially when the land is low, we think 
it is to be preferred, but not in the spring — indeed, unless 
there is danger of drowning out the trees, during winter, 
we would not recommend it. 

When the ground has been prepared by running the 
cross furrows or ridges, there is nothing more to do until 
the planting begins. But when it has been plowed, har- 
rowed, and rolled, as at first described, the planter has a 
choice of methods of marking, or " signing " out, his or- 
chard. He can do it by simply running furrows and 
cross furrows, at the proper distances, as heretofore men- 
tioned, for ground that has not been plowed at all, and 
which is done just as for corn, only that the rows are 
4 



74 PKAOH t;i:LTUKE. 

wider. But, if geometrical exactness is required, he will 
have it staked off with chain and compass. This is sel- 
dom, if ever, done in large peach growing districts, where 
peaches are planted for profit, and where thousands, and 
sometimes tens of thousands, in a single season by the 
same proprietor. Besides, a careful man, with a quiet 
team can run off the rows very well, and so as to neither 
incommode the after tillage nor offend the eye by ir- 
regular lines. 

PLANTING. 

When all things are ready, the planting begins. And 
we remark here, that the same care is to be exercised to 
prevent mixture or confusion of varieties, as at the nur- 
sery. There should be only one variety in a row, and all 
of the same variety should be planted together. This will 
prove satisfactory when the fruit comes to be gathered. 

We might here suggest another method, which we 
have never seen adopted ; but, in view of the conveni- 
ence of gathering, we think worthy of consideration ; it is 
to plant the same variety in squares of 100, thus : 



By this method great compactness will be attained. 
For small orchards, where not more than two or three 
hundred of the same variety are desired, we think it will 
be found very convenient ; but when more are wanted, 
it will not afford any additional advantage. 



PLANTING AN ORCHARD. 75 

In planting an orchard, it is usual to plant a number of 
varieties ; some early, some late, and some intermediate 
ones. The object of this is two-fold. First, in order that 
success or failure may not depend altogether upon a sin- 
gle variety, but upon many. Secondly, that the fruit 
may ripen progressively, so that the planter will liave a 
supply for the market during the entire season. Also, 
that he may be the better able to handle the crop, for 
while it may be quite convenient to send ten thousand 
baskets of a dozen varieties to market during a season of 
six weeks, it may be quite impracticable to send the same 
quantity, of one variety, in a single week. For these rea- 
sons a selection is made, beginning with the earliest, and 
ending with the latest. 

One side of the orchard should be fixed upon as the 
front. Here should be the entrance, and as near the 
center as convenient, and from the entrance there should 
be an avenue, or main way, through to the rear. This 
should be at least thirty feet wide ; and, if large peach 
wagons are to be used, more space will be required, or at 
least a turning place at the far end. 

The earliest fruit should be planted next the entrance ; 
and progressively to the rear, planting the latest last. 
This will enable the planter to clear his orchard, as he 
goes. The trees in front will be relieved, the limbs will 
gradually regain their former position, little or no fruit 
will be knocked off in gathering, and the good temper 
both of the proprietor and hands be maintained. 

The actual planting now begins by digging holes for the 
trees. When the ground has been ridged, as above describ- 
ed, they are made in the center of the ridge about a foot or 
fifteen inches below the natural surface. We say natural 
surface, because it will not do to place the young trees 
on the top of the ridge. By doing this, they would be 
simply planted upon a hillock, which would soon wear 
away, leaving the trees without adequate moisture or 



76 PEACH CULTURE. 

support. The ridge is simply to serve as a temporary 
protection against water. After the first winter has pass- 
ed, its use will have been ended. The roots of the young 
tree should, therefore, find their home and sustenance in 
the common level of the soil. The ridges themselves, 
the spring after planting, will be leveled down and in- 
corporated with the otlier mold. 

The holes at the crossings, in the other method, are 
made substantially tlie same way. In any case, regard 
should be had to the size of the roots, the character of 
the soil, etc. The usual size is about eighteen inches 
square, and twelve or fifteen inches deep. The admis- 
sion of the roots without crowding or cramping is the 
aim, and the intelligent operator can see at a glance what 
the proper size should be. 

When the soil is gravelly, or clayey, it is advisable to 
make them larger, in order that when the young fibres 
begin to grow, they may not have so compact a soil to 
penetrate ; but in congenial ground this is unnecessary. 

The trees are usually trimmed at the nursery, but some- 
times they are not, and have to be trimmed when set 
out. This is properly done by taking the young tree in 
the left hand, immediately above the roots, and turning 
up the latter. Then, with a sharp pruning knife, cut off 
all injured roots, and sliorten such straggling ones as ex- 
tend more than a foot from the main stem. Now turn 
the tree in the hand, and cut off smoothly and closely, 
every limb for the distance of two feet. The tree is now 
ready to plant. After the holes are dug, two hands, at 
least, are necessary to plant. The trees are first dropped, 
one at each hole. One of the hands throws a shovelful of 
mold into the hole ; the other sets the tree therein in an 
erect position, and holds it there. The first, shovels in the 
dirt that was previously ta' en out ; or, if this is not suf- 
ficiently rich or fine, he scoops up some of the surrounding 
surface, and fills up the hole, a little above the common 



PLANTING xVN ORCHARD. 77 

level, so as to shed the rain. All the while, the second 
hand is tramping the soil closely around the root of the 
tree, and still maintaining its erect position. 

The next tree is set two or three hundred feet beyond 
the first; and the third two or three hundred feet beyond 
the second, and so on to the end of the row. The object of 
this is to have sight trees or pointers^ and thus enable the 
operators to obtain straight rows, which they seldom do, 
when they plant continuously from one end to the other. 
During the planting, they are continually sighting the 
rows, and also the cross rows, and drawing in, or shoving 
out, so as to get both in line. This is done almost 
instantly, takes far less time in the aggregate than is 
supposed, and adds greatly to the appearance of the or- 
chard. It is not customary, to use any fertilizer when 
planting, but sometimes a handful of bone-dust or ashes 
is placed in the hill ; and it is, no doubt, beneficial. 

Where the soil is clean and loose, the planting is very 
rapid ; and two hands will dig the holes and set five 
hundred trees a day in the light, mellow soil of the Pen- 
insula. Where it is less kind, the work will, of course, 
be slower. 

TIME. 

The orchard may be planted in the fall or spring with 
equal success. Some prefer the former, and some the 
latter. If the young trees have been grown in rich soil, 
the wood will be somewhat soft and succulent ; and, if 
planted in the fall, in severe latitudes, they will be very 
much exposed, and may freeze down during the winter ; 
while if the same trees be kept heeled-in, and thus pro- 
tected, they will suffer little or no injury. 

The advantages of fall planting are, that first-class trees 
are more readily obtained, as the nurseries have not then 
been culled, or the stock exhausted, as is often the case in 



78 PEACH CULTURE. 

the spring. For this reason it is well to secure the trees 
in the fall, even if they are not to be planted until spring. 
The ground is generally in better order in the fall than in 
the spring, and the planting can, in consequence, be done 
in a more satisfactory manner. It is also a more convenient 
season for the planter. His corn has been harvested, his 
fall work generally disposed of; and just before the win- 
ter sets in, he can plant his orchard. For these reasons 
we prefer the fall ; but if more convenient, we should not 
hesitate to plant in the spring. Our experience justifies 
this conclusion. We commenced planting an orchard in 
the fall of 1867 ; but, before we finished, w^e were over- 
taken by winter ; the residue of the trees were heeled-in 
until the next spring, when they were planted. In the sum- 
mer of 1869, we could not tell which looked best. Both 
did very well. In the fall, planting may commence as 
soon as the leaves can be rubbed off with the hand, and 
continue until winter stops the work. In spring, it may 
commence as soon as the ground is dry enough, and con- 
tinue until the buds come out. 



CHAPTER XIII. 
ORCHARD CULTIVATION. 

FIRST TRIMMING. 

When the trees are planted in the fall, it is preferable 
to leave a few branches towards the top of the stem. 
They serve as a sort of shield to frosts of winter. 
When ])lanting is done in the spring, the trees should be 
trimmed close and smooth like a rod, every limb taken 
off, and the tops cut down to a uniform height of not less 
than two feet and a half, nor more than three and a half. 



ORCHARD CULTIVATION. 79 

Three feet is a very good height. Those planted in the 
fall, should be treated in the very same way in the spring 
following. This should be done as early in the spring as 
the weather will admit, as it is desirable to confine all the 
ascending sap to the stem, and not let it be wasted in the 
branches which are to be cut oiF. Some uninformed and 
inexperienced planters often leave a few branches, hoping 
thereby to induce earlier fruiting; but it has no such 
eifect, but rather retards it ; for it should always be re- 
membered, that fruit is oydy produced on wood of the 
previous year's growth ; so that these branches on the 
trees when planted, never can produce fruit, unless it be 
the first season. This very seldom occurs, and is yiever 
desirable. 

CROPPING. 

The usual crop cultivated in a young peach orchard, is 
corn — small grains, never. It is believed, that if the 
ground was merely cultivated between the rows, kept 
loose and clear of weeds and grass, the young trees would 
make more rapid growth ; and to cultivate with low 
vegetables, such as potatoes, cabbages, and so forth, would 
be better than corn. But it is too long to wait for a re- 
turn, to leave the ground idle until the peaches come in ; 
and the acreage is too great, to cultivate it all in potatoes 
or other root crop. It is, therefore, cultivated in the 
favorite crop, corn. And this is perhaps the best after 
all, as the injury to the young orchard is but slight, 
while the return is considerable. 

The ground is prepared in the spring as any other. It 
is plowed, harrowed, sometimes rolled, and then marked 
out and planted, with four rows between each row of 
trees. It is done in this way : Run a furrow for a row of 
corn four feet from the row of trees ; then another four 
feet from that one ; a third four feet from the last, and a 
fourth four feet from the third. The distances will count 



80 PEACH CULTURE. 

thus : From row of trees to first cow of corn, 4 feet ; from 
first row of corn to second, 4 feet ; from second to third 
row of corn, 4 feet ; from the third to the fourth, 4 feet ; 
and from the fourth row of corn to the next row of trees, 
4 feet ; in all, twenty feet. As no furrow can be run, 
between the trees and on the same line, the spaces are filled 
up by hand and hoe, without any furrow. It will be seen 
from this, that each tree occupies precisely the space of 
one hill of corn ; that is, a square each side of which is 
four feet. This is sufficient tlie first season. The second, 
the rows may be reduced to three ; the third to two ; 
after which, if the orchard has grown well, and comes into 
bearing, it will not be desirable to crop it at all. But 
planters often cultivate four rows all the while. 

SECOND TRIMMING. 

In the month of June after planting, an intelligent and 
careful man should go through the orchard witli his 
pruning knife, and lop off every limb and sucker nearer 
than two feet and a half to the ground. He should also 
cut in any straggling limbs that have gone far beyond 
the general contour of the head. It will also in some cases 
be judicious to thin out some, on one side or the other, in 
order to give the tree a proper balance and handsome 
shape. It is of great importance that this work be timely 
and properly done ; for if the suckers and low limbs be 
not cut off, they will not only spoil the shape of the tree, 
but exhaust its strength and greatly retard its growth. 
If the trimming is timely and judiciously done, the limbs 
that are left will grow strong and vigorous, the wood will 
ripen early, and the vitality of the tree be preserved. 

At the time this trimming takes place, if any diseased, 
scrubby, or incurably ill-shaped trees are found, they 
should be carefully noted, in order that they may be re- 
placed the next fall. This should be done thus: let 



ORCHARD CULTIVATION. 81 

the pruner have a little memorandum, and enter therein 
the number of such trees in each row, giving also the num- 
ber of the row and the variety. By this means the planter 
will know exactly, how many trees of each variety he 
will need, and in what rows the vacancies occur, and all 
without the expense and trouble of a recount. 

The more effectually to insure the proper substitution, 
the faulty trees should be pulled up, broken down, or 
otherwise destroyed. 

HEIGHT OF HEAD. 

There is some diversity of opinion in regard to the 
height of the head of a tree ; or rather at what height the 
head should be allowed to commence to form. We think 
three feet the proper height. Allowing the limbs to stand 
at this point, they will naturally strike upward at an 
acute angle with the stem, and thus allow room enough 
to cultivate around them with a mule or low horse. And 
this is important to the cultivator ; for if the trees, instead 
of being plowed around, have to be dug or spaded, the 
expense will be considerably increased. 

The arguments advanced by those who advocate low 

heads are two. First : that the fruit is nearer the ground, 

more easily picked, and not so likely to break down the 

branches. Second : that the low heads withstand the 

storm better, and are not so easily blown down. But 

the answer to all this is, that when the heads are low, the 

fruit does not ripen early or well on the low branches, 

and is generally small in size and inferior in quality. In 

time, the lower branches for the want of sufficient air and 

light, die, and have to be removed, thus leaving the tree 

with less bearing wood or in worse shape than if it had 

been trimmed up to the proper height at first. In regard 

to the exemption from injury by storms, it is ascertained, 

from experience and observation, that very few trees are 
4* 



82 PEACH CULTURE. 

ever blown down, or even injured by ordinary storms, and 
as to tornadoes or hurricanes, low heads give no protec- 
tion. It is admitted the fruit can be more easily gathered 
from low than high trees ; but this advantage is but 
slight, and no adequate compensation for what is lost. 

The character of the head is formed the first year, and 
it will need but little attention thereafter. The trimming 
directed for June, however, should be repeated about the 
last of August. If well done on those two occasions, all 
that will be necessary in subsequent years will be to cut 
out dead and broken branches. Peach trees do not form 
close, compact heads, like apples and pears ; and, conse- 
quently, do not need thinning. 

CUTTING-IK 

Some maintain that the peach tree should be cut-in an- 
nnally. This is done by cutting oif about one-half of 
each year's growth the same season, or early the next 
spring. When the sap reaches this point, it is, of course, 
checked, and sends out several new brandies, instead of 
following the old one, as it would have done, had not that 
been cut in. In this way, more bearing wood is pro- 
duced nearer the main stem and nearer the ground. We 
believe it is an advantage ; and, in the case of young 
trees, may do very well ; but when the trees attain full 
size, it would require much labor, and be attended with 
considerable expense ; and, taking into view the fact, that 
the trees hardly ever bear three years in succession, it is 
believed that cutting-in would not pay. For garden cul- 
ture, or even small orchards, it may be adopted; but 
when trees are counted by thousands, and tens of thou- 
sands, few will find it convenient or profitable. There is 
still another advantage claimed for cutting-in, and which 
we do not wish to undervalue. It is, that it invigorates 
and prolongs the life of the tree. We think this is so, 



ORCHARD CULTIVATION. 



83 



and that a tree cut-in annually will remain longer thrifty 
than one not so treated. The leaves will be greener, the 
young bearing wood more abundant, and the fruit larger 
and richer. But in a congenial soil, where orchards are 
nearly as easily renewed as strawberries, and where the 
trouble and expense of cuttiug-in are considerable, it will 
not be often resorted to. 

PLOWING. 

The orchard should be plowed at least twice during 
the year. Once between the middle of April and the 
middle of May ; and again between the middle of Septem- 
ber and the middle of October; each time with a small plow. 
A small plow is preferable, because it can be easily handled 
and guided among the trees and about the roots without 
injury; and also because a large plow makes the furrows 
too deep, and thereby cuts the roots. The furrows should 
be narrow, so that the ground may be well broken. The 
rows of trees are first plowed around with a low horse or 
mule, so that he can walk close up to the trees. The 
single-tree used should not be more than eighteen inches 
long, and the ends should be covered with stiff leather 
shields. The horse should be muzzled to keep him 
from biting the trees. Both these precautions should be 
taken whenever an orchard is plowed, but in plowing 
amongst young trees, it is doubly important. The fur- 
rows, in the spring, are thrown from the tree; in the fall, 
toioards them. The reason of this is, that in spring, when 
growth commences, it is not advantageous, but rather in- 
jurious to the tree to have any soil piled around it. The 
light and air are wanted to act on the roots. The rains 
also, trickle down the branches and stems, and thus reach 
the roots. A pile of earth, therefore, around the roots, 
sheds the water, and prevents its proper distribution. 
But in the fall, after the growth has been made and the 



84 PEACH CULTURE. 

fruit gathered, the tree needs rest, the less water about 
the stem the better. The earth thrown up about the root 
is then a positive advantage, as it not only sheds the 
winter rains in some degree, but it also serves as a mulch 
to protect from injury. This tender part is what is called 
the " neck," and extends about an inch above, and two 
below the surface. Here, then, is a constant ebb 
and flow of heat, and operating in contrary directions 
at different seasons. In summer tlie air is warmer than 
the earth ; but in winter, colder. The surface line marks 
the limit of these two influences ; and from their constant 
fluctuations, it is always a tender point, and liable to be 
attacked by disease. 

In plowing around the trees, about two circuits are 
made. The 7niddles are then broken up with two horses 
or mules, and a somewhat larger plow ; but a very large 
plow should never be used. When the ground is thus 
plowed, it is carefully harrowed, or cultivated down, un- 
til every clod is broken, and the whole surface left as 
smooth as a garden. In doing this, one horse and a small 
harrow is used around the trees, and two horses and a 
larger one in the middles. In wet seasons, foul land, or 
very rich soil, the cultivations may have to be. repeated 
oftener than have been mentioned heretofore in this 
chapter. Indeed, the best planters now cultivate their 
orchards as they do their corn, about four or five times 
between the spring plowing and the first of July. 



COMING IN. 85 



CHAPTER XIV. 

COMING IN. 

A full crop of peaches may usually be expected the 
fourth year after planting. Thus, an orchard planted in 
the fall of 1865, yields a full crop of peaches in 1869. 
"When we say a full crop, we mean a basket to the tree. 
This is a full crop for trees of that age and size, and qiute 
as much as they ought to bear. Some, however, will bear 
two baskets instead of one, and others will not have half 
a basket. Something depends upon variety, culture, and 
so on. Sometimes it is very difficult to account for the 
difference in production. But there are some varieties 
that uniformly bear large crops, and others that as uni- 
formly bear small ones ; the Troth, or Old Mixon, is an 
instance of the former, and Susquehanna of the latter. 

From years, however, of observation, it is found that 
certain varieties are not only much more fruitful than 
others, but commence bearing much earlier. Whether 
or not they continue as long, is a question not so well 
settled, as there has not been time enough for observa- 
tion. From present indications it would seem that they 
do ; but longer experience and closer observation will be 
needed to test it thoroughly. 

We have said a full crop may be expected in four 
years. Of course this general statement should be quali- 
fied by the remark that it is not to be expected if the 
season be inimical. If there is st failure generally, the 
young trees will share the fate of the old ones. 

Again, they often begin to bear earlier. We have seen 
trees, planted in the spring, mature perfect fruit the 
same fall; and we have now, July 1869, young trees full 



86 PEACH CULTURE. 

of fruit that were planted in the fall of 1867. They are, 
however, all of one variety, Hale's Early, which is re- 
markable for its early bearing as well as its early ripen- 
ing, but many of these will yet fall off before full ma- 
turity. Sometimes fruit will appear the second, and others 
the third year. It is not generally desirable that trees 
should bear when very young. It is injurious in two 
ways. It weakens the tree itself in diverting the vital 
forces from the formation of wood into the production of 
fruit, oftentimes giving the tree a lasting tendency 
to feebleness. At an early age neither the stem nor 
the branches are able to bear a load of fruit, and they 
often break down under its weight. Tlie tree is thus 
permanently injured both in usefulness and beauty. 

The sum of the matter is, that trees do sometimes bear 
even the first year, which is to be regretted ; often the 
second, which is not to be desired ; very often the third, 
which is gratifying ; and nearly always the fourth, which 
is to be expected and desired. 

When fruit appears the first year, it should be rubbed 
off, in order to protect the tree. A single peach may 
sometimes be left to gratify the enthusiastic planter. 
The second year thrifty, vigorous trees may be allowed 
to carry a dozen. The third year, two or tree times as 
many. The fourth, whatever they produce. 



BASKETS AND CRATES. 



87 



CHAPTER XV. 



BASKETS AND CRATES 




We have now followed the peach from the kernel to 
the mature tree, loaded with its rich burden of delicious 
and health-giving fruit. 

The next thing is to get it to market. But before this 
is done, several preliminary matters have to be arranged. 

And amongst these, Baskets and 
Crates are prominent. The standard 
size of a peach basket is five-eighths 
of a bushel, struck measure. This 
size has been adopted and fixed by 
the " Peninsular Fruit Grower'' s As- 
sociation^'' and upon it all collateral 
_.^^^ calculations are made. The baskets 
Fi^. 11. —CHIP BASKET, are usually about eight inches in 
diameter at the bottom, flaring to about sixteen inches at 
the top. They are always made of wood, but in various 
ways. Some, of the old-fashioned white-oak splits, which 
are the most durable and substantial ; others of staves, 
with a solid bottom, which are neater 
but not so strong ; and others again, 
of broad bass-wood splits, very light, 
neat and handsome. These last are 
furnished also with a light frame lid 
fastened with a wire, which makes 
them very desirable for shipping by 
express, or when they are not ex- 
pected to be returned. Still another 
is recommended by some, and is said 
to be popular in the West. It is firkin-shaped, has three 
hoops, and contains one-third of a bushel. It is a stave 
basket, the staves being of tulip or poplar wood — of 




Fig. 12.— STAVE 
BASKET. 




88 PEACH CULTURE. 

course other varieties would answer equally well — the ends 
and covers of pine. It is made on an iron frame of three 
iron discs and spindle. The inner and outer lioops are set 
in the top, a stave put in place, then 
i another, and so on all round. Some- 
times the staves are pierced to admit 
the air. All these have their special 
merit. The first will last for years, so 
far as mere wear and tear is concerned. 
But old baskets, when they become 
f!^^3.-be^er faded, make a poor appearance, and 
BASKET. planters generally discard them, be- 

lieving that they lose more in the price of their fruit than 
would pay for new ones. Hence the durability is not bo 
much of an object as lightness and neatness. 

The stave basket is preferred by some, because, being 
smooth inside, the peaches do not lodge on the sides as 
they do to some degree in the old split baskets. But, un- 
less the fruit is quite ripe, which it never should be when 
picked, it is believed very little injury results from this 
cause. 

Whatever baskets may be adopted, they should be 
procured in good time, as it often happens that just in the 
height of the season, when most needed, they are most 
difficult to obtain. 

The quantity a planter may need will depend, not only 
upon the size of his crop, but also upon his distance from 
market, and the prompt attention of his consignees and 
transporters in returning his baskets. If he send his 
fruit by rail, a distance not exceeding two hundred miles, 
the baskets should be returned to him the third day. If 
four hundred miles, which is about as far as mature 
peaches can be sent with safety, on the fifth day. This 
is plenty of time and rather more than faithful and ex- 
pert consignees and transporters will require. But we 
often find, that through the carelessness or dishonesty of 



BASKETS AND CRATES. 89 

these agents, the time greatly exceeds this, and many 
baskets are never returned at all. When not so returned, 
regular business consignees pay for the baskets at whatever 
may be fixed upon as their full value ; but the sharpers and 
extemporized dealers usually manage to elude responsibil- 
ity, and cheat their patrons out of the baskets that have 
been lost throuerh their carelessness, or which thev have 
sold with the peaches for reshipment, and for which they 
have received the money. 

But suppose the planter to live two hundred miles 
from market, and have ten thousand baskets of fruit ; how 
many baskets should he need ? We ascertain it thus : 

The quantity is ten thousand baskets, and the time in 
which they are to be shipped will not exceed sixty work- 
ing days. Divide 10,000 by 60, and we have 166 ^\^ bas- 
kets as the average daily shipment for the season. Did 
not this average vary, were the baskets promptly return- 
ed, we would then need just five hundred baskets to ship 
our entire crop of ten thousand. The operation would 
be this: Monday we ship 166; Tuesday 167; and Wed- 
nesday 167, equal 500. On Wednesday evening, Mon- 
day's baskets come back, and are ready for Thursday's 
shipment ; and so, in regular succession, through the 
season. But no matter how judiciously orchards have 
been planted, with a view to uniform and successive ripen- 
ing, it is found in practice, that sometimes much more 
fruit will ripen than at others. Hence, the necessity of 
providing for the excess over the general average. In a 
* matter that in its nature is fluctuating, we can only ap- 
proximate exactness. In ordinary cases, twenty-five per 
centum wdll be a liberal allowance. This would require 
the planter to have 625 baskets. And this should be 
what he would need. But what prudent man would 
undertake to send a crop of ten thousand baskets in six 
hundred and twenty-five ? The reason he can not do it is, 
consignees sell or lend them to their retail customers, or 



90 PEACH CULTURE. 

neglect to put them in return cars ; and railroad agents 
neglect to deliver at the right place, deliver too late, or 
do not deliver at all ; and the planter has to provide for 
all these contingencies at considerable expense and loss ; so 
that, instead of 650 baskets, he provides from 4,000 to 5,000 
or four or five times as many as he ought to need. This 
abuse, however, is now attracting attention, and will no 
doubt be corrected, either in reforming the old, or employ- 
ing new agents. 

The estimates here given are based on the usual prac- 
tice amongst planters of planting early, medium and late 
fruit to run through the season. But some plant only a 
few favorites. In such instances, many more baskets will 
be required, because the fruit will ripen more nearly to- 
gether. For instance, a planter has ten thousand baskets 
of Hale's Early, Troth's Early, and Early York, in equal 
proportions. Now, instead of running sixty working 
days, they would not run more than twenty. And instead 
of sending 166 per day, he would send 500. Monday he 
will need^SOO ; Tuesday 500, and Wednesday 500; 1,500 
in the aggregate before he gets any back. Add to this 
25 per cent and he should have 1,875, were his agents 
honest and faithful. As he finds them, he must provide 
a basket for every basket of fruit, to be reasonably 
assured that he will have sufficient. This abuse in regard 
to baskets is very annoying to planters, and greatly di- 
minishes their profits. It should be promptly corrected. 
It is wholly inexcusable. 

CRATES. 

The standard dimensions of a crate are eight inches 
wide, fourteen deep, and twenty-three and a half long, 
outside measure. They are made of pine or other light 
wood. The ends and partition are sawed three-quarters of 
an inch thick, seven and a half wide, and fourteen long. 



BASKETS AND CRATES. . 91 

The bottom and top twenty-three and a half long, six 
and a half wide, and three-eighths of an inch thick. The 
sides are composed of four slats, twenty-three and a half 
inches long, two and a half inches wide, and also three- 
eio^hths of an inch thick. Sometimes liojhter stuif is used. 
The ends and partition are thicker, because to these 
all the other pieces are nailed. The whole crate consists 
of thirteen pieces. It is very simple in construction, and 
any intelligent hand, with a proper frame, can put it up 
without difficulty. The stuff is sometimes planed on the 
outside, which gives it a much neater appearance. Crates 

of this kind cost about ten 
dollars per hundred. They 
go witli the peaches, and 
are never returned ; hence, 
those who ship in crates 
must provide as many 
^. , , crates as they have fruit to 

Fio'. 1*.— CRATE. 

fill them. The reasons they 
are not returned, are two. First : they cannot be packed 
in each other like baskets, but occupy precisely as much 
room as when full. Besides, they are much more trouble- 
some to handle, and the transporters will not return 
them free of charge as they do baskets. Secondly : they 
are usually reshipped or sent at once to a distant market, 
and sold with the peaches. 

The relative merits and advantages of shipping in bas- 
kets and crates depend on circumstances. If the planter 
is shipping fruit to be sold in the New York or Philadel- 
phia market, he will find it profitable to ship in baskets, 
as it is better displayed, and presents a more inviting ap- 
pearance. But if he ships to more distant points, or 
only to the great commercial centers for reshipment, 
crates are preferable, as the fruit is better protected, and 
bears rougher handling. 

Shipping by express is done almost exclusively in crates. 




92 PEACH CULTURE. 

CHAPTER XYI. 

TRANSPORTATION. 

The subject of Transportation has been, and still is, one 
of great interest and considerable difficulty, as well as the 
source of no small amount of bad feeling to peach growers 
on the Delaware Peninsula. The poach trade itself is but 
of recent date, and its rapid growth has been unprecedent- 
ed. Ten years ago it was insignificant ; now it is fully 
equal to two millions and a half baskets in a fruitful season. 
At first, the charge for transportation by rail to Philadel- 
phia was six cents per basket, and to New York twelve. 
But the charges have been constantly increasing ever since, 
until in 1867, they were to Philadelphia thirteen, and to 
New York, thirty-six and a half cents. On a comparison 
of the charges on peaches with those for transportation of 
other articles, the unreasonableness was so apparent, that 
great dissatisfaction was felt amongst growers, and means 
of redress were sought. 

For this purpose a convention of Fruit Growers was 
held in the Capitol at Dover, on the 15th of October, 1867, 
and a permanent organization efiected under the name of 
the " Peninsula Fruit Growers' Association.^^ One of 
the main objects of this association was to obtain a reduc- 
tion of freight to New York. A large committee of influ- 
ential and intelligent gentlemen was appointed to confer 
with the officers of the railroad companies, and endeavor 
to make a satisfactory arrangement. Several conferences 
took place accordingly, and a reduction nearly equivalent 
to ten cents per basket was obtained for the year 1868. 
But as there were no peaches that year, it amounted to 
no practical advantage. It was not satisfactory, anyhow, 
to a large portion of the peach growers, and very justly 
so ; for the charges were still extortionate, and totally 



TRANSPOllTATION. 93 

unjustifiable on any principle of right and wrong ; being 
ahoiit foitr times as much as for any other freight of its 
class. Indeed the object of the railroad companies seem- 
ed to be to appropriate, in the form of freights, all the 
profits of the crop, and leave the growers only enough to 
pay for production, picking and selling. But this unjust 
and dishonest conduct, on the part of the railroad compa- 
nies, had the efiect of arousing public indignation, and 
directing public attention to other means of transporta- 
tion. It was soon found that most of the fruit could 
be sent much cheaper and in much better order by water ; 
and now lines of steamers are forming between New York 
and Philadelphia, and the several harbors on the bay-side. 
In order that interior growers may reach the bay, a 
steam-tug is to be employed in every creek to convey 
schooners and other small craft down the creeks to the 
principal stations. By this means most of the fruit can be 
carried to the great cities, in good time, in better order, 
and much clieaper than if sent by rail. The rates have 
not yet been permanently fixed, but it is believed they 
will not vary much from fifteen cents per basket to New 
York, or a little over half what they are by railroad. 

Besides this, there are new lines of roads building, 
which will afford still greater facilities, and reduction 
of freights. 

The route and line by which to ship the fruit, wliat- 
ever they may be, should be selected as early as con- 
venient, that is, as soon as all the accessible informa- 
tion can be obtained. The next thing to be looked 
after, is the engagement of the requisite number of cars or 
boats, and to arrange the time of their departure and 
arrival. Peaches are perishable, and it will not do to leave 
their transportation to the opportunities or contingencies 
of the hour. A complete running schedule must be fixed 
upon, and must be run with certainty, or the shipper 
may suffer great loss during the season. 



94 PEACH CULTURE. 



CHAPTER XYII. 

CONSIGNEES. 

In the cities of Philadelphia and New York there is a 
a class of men known as commission merchants and prod- 
uce dealers. They have stands or stalls in the markets, 
or in some of the streets where fruits and vegetables are 
principally sold. But their more profitable and import- 
ant business in a fruitful season is to sell fruit, and espe- 
cially peaches, on commission. The distance between 
Philadelphia and the center of the peach district being 
only about seventy-five miles, the time very short, and 
only the smaller portion of the crop sent there, the com- 
mission men seldom make any very special effort to obtain 
the trade, or arrangement for its delivery. They rely upon 
the ordinary provisions of the roads and steamboats. But 
not so with those of New York. The great bulk of the crop 
is sent there ; the competition is very brisk, and it, conse- 
quently, requires special efforts, and complete arrange- 
ments to secure patronage. Hence, as soon as it is ascer- 
tained, to a reasonable certainty, that there will be a 
crop, the commission men visit the peach district in per- 
son, or send expert agents, to secure consignments and 
engage cars and shipping agents. They first estimate the 
crop ; then engage the number of cars requisite to trans- 
port the consignments that will be made to them ; and 
then the local sliippers at the different stations where 
peaches are to be delivered. This completes the arrange- 
ment at the producing end of the line. At the sale end, 
carts are engaged to haul the fruit from Jersey City, the 
end of the railroad line, to pomts of sale or reshipment in 



CONSIGNEES. 95 

J^ew York. A portion of the fruit is sold at the stands of 
the consignees ; the rest is sold to other parties at whole- 
sale, and reshipped to Boston, Providence, Albany, 
Montreal, and elsewhere. 

. Some of the consignees are upright, honest men, who 
do a fair and legitimate business, on business principles ; 
but some of them are swindlers and sharpers, whose sole 
object is to make money for the time, and who have no 
reputation to lose, and who do not aim to gain one. These 
are unscrupulous in their statements, importunate in their 
solicitations for consignments, and wholly unreliable in 
making returns. They often advertise in religious papers, 
obtain some credulous, or good natured man, to certify to 
their characters and qualifications, obtain consignments 
upon the faith of them, and cheat their dupes out of all 
they send them. This may be regarded as the most dis- 
reputable class. There is another, however, as dishonest, 
but more politic. The members of this class wish to main- 
tain good reputations, and, at the same time, fill their 
pockets with what justly belongs to others. They do it 
in one or other of these ways : The fruit consigned to them 
is nearly always of difiTerent grades ; from very good to 
poor. If they have stands of their own, where they sell 
by retail, they will select a portion, it may be a fifth, a 
fourth, or a third, of the choicest for themselves, and sell 
the remainder at an average price of seventy-five cents 
per basket, which may be a fair enough price for such fruit. 
But the fruit the dealer has taken to his own stand would 
readily bring a dollar and a half per basket. However, 
he returns the whole consignment at seventy-five cents, 
and pockets the difierence. To illustrate. Let us suppose 
Peter Pence consigns to John Sly two hundred and fifty 
baskets of graded peaches. Fifty are very fine ; one hun- 
dred are good ; seventy-five are fair ; and twenty-five are 
poor : 

The proper market price would be thus presented : 



96 PEACH CULTURE. 

50 Baskets fine at $1.50 per basket, $75.00 



100 


(( 


good 


a 


1.00 


u 


(( 


100.00 


75 


(( 


fair 


u 


75 


u 


a 


56.25 


25 


(( 


poor 
Total, 


(( 


50 


(( 


(( 


12.50 




$243.75 



200 Baskets at 75 cents - - 150.00 



The difference is - - $93.75 
Or if the consignee is very smart, and wishes to make a 

pretense of great exactness, he will make out a detailed 
account tlius : 

50 Baskets at $1.00 - - $50.00 

100 " "75 - - 75.00 

75 " "50 - - 37.50 

25 " " 40 . . 10.00 



Total, - - ^ - $172.50 



Difference, - - $71.25 

This difference the dishonest consignee pockets, and 
absolutely cheats his confiding customer out of this 
amount in a simple transaction. Others manag:e it different- 
ly. Sell for all they can and return what they please. If 
the market is very good, and prices higli, tiiey may sell a 
whole consignment at $1.50 per basket, and return $1.25, 
or, if the market is, on the contrary, glutted, they may 
sell for 75 cents, and return 65, and so on ; their returns 
depending altogether upon their own cupidity, fear of de- 
tection, or loss of patronage. We have reliable informa- 
tion that some parties have actually made enough in a 
single season from these swindling operations, to retire 
from business altocjther. And we know one firm, whose 
business was very extensive, but whose dereliction in this 
respect was so gross, that not a single planter patronized 
them a second season. They run clear out. 



CONSIGNEES. 97 

Such gross fraud can hardly occur in any other busi- 
T^ess ; but is comparatively easy in this. The fruit is 
perishable ; it has no standard value ; the market prices 
fluctuate with the supply, the temperature, and even the 
hour of its arrival. Hence it is almost impossible to 
know, or even guess, what it should bring. And this is 
the reason that consignors cannot protect themselves 
against these fraudulent practices. Their only safety is 
in the honesty of their consignees. Of this they judge 
by the season's returns. If they are consistent through- 
out the season, and a fair average price is realized, the 
planter is usually satisfied. One ships to one agent, and 
another to another. They can compare notes. If the 
man who has the worst peaches gets the best price, the 
other may be reasonably certain, he has been cheated. 
But if the fruit is equally good, and the price for the 
same days nearly the same, both may reasonably conclude 
they have been honorably dealt with. The rale is not in- 
fallible : for there may be collusion, or both may be 
equally dishonest. 

But the planter can do nothing more than exercise his 
best judgment in the selection of his consignee. It is 
very important he should do this; and after he has gain- 
ed all the information he can, he will at last have to com- 
mit himself to the keeping of somebody, and run the risks 
which are incident to his business. 

Old shippers are wary and alert. New ones should 
consult them, and avail themselves of their advice ; re- 
membering the old proverb, that '' experience teaches a 
dear school." 

Then again, abuses may, and should be, remedied ; and 
if the planters on the Peninsula would but consult their 
own interest, abuses would soon cease. The cure is in 
their own hands. But it requires combined action, and 
herein lies the difficulty. There is not one of them who 
would not willingly and cheerfully give ten times the tim« 
5 



98 PEACH crLTURE. 

and money necessary to effectuate the object, could lie do 
so individually ; but because it requires united eflforts, 
meetings, diflferences, and discussions, it is not done, and 
thousands, yes, tens of thousands of dollars are lost every 
year. One object of the Peninsula Fruit Grower ^^ Asso- 
ciation was to insure unity of interest and purpose. AVith 
this view, it embraced the entire Peninsula, which fur- 
nishes nearly all the peaches sent to Philadelphia and 
New York. But so far, it has not enlisted nearly all the 
planters. Most of the large ones, it is true, are members, 
but still a large number have stood aloof, and, while it is 
believed they approve of the Association and its aims, yet 
they have not taken interest enough in it to give it their 
active support. Some of them expect to reap the ad- 
vantages without the incidental expenses of time and 
money. Others do not unite from the mere force of a 
habit, which repels them from all associations whatever. 
In this way the Association is not able to do all the good 
it otherwise might. Did it include all the j^lanters of the 
Peninsula, as was intended by its founders, it is easily 
seen it would control the peach market, and might dic- 
tate its own terms. One of its first and most obvious 
objects then would be to establish a depot, or mart, of its 
own in Philadelphia and New York, where all its fruit 
would be sold by its own agents. This would dispense 
with consignees or middle men altogether, and would be 
a benefit to both producer and consumer ; ns the latter 
wouhl be better served, at no greater, if not a reduced, 
price, while the former would obtain what the fruit was 
worth in the market. Until this be done, the niantera 
need not expect to avoid imposition and fraud. 



LADDERS. 



99 



CHAPTER XVni. 

LADDERS. 

The ladders used in the peach orchard are about ten 
feet high, and are self-supporting. They are all of one 
general model, although differing somewhat in construc- 
tion. The most approved is made of t\YO boards, six in- 
ches wide and one thick, for the sides; into these are 
grooved and mortised steps of the same width. On the 
top there is a board about eiglit or ten inches broad for 
setting the basket, and also for the picker to stand on 




Fig. 15. — STEP LADDER. 



Fio-. 16 — CHEAP LADDER. 



while picking the highest peaches. Through the top runs 
an iron rod, or wooden rung, which fastens the support. 
This latter consists of two poles or narrow pieces of scant- 
ling, fastened together by cross-bars, such as shingling 
lath, which rotates on the rod or rung, and can be drawn 
out from, or up to, the steps at will. Both the ladder and 
support are wider at the bottom than at the top, which 
insures against toppling over. 

A simple and cheaper ladder is made by taking four 



100 PEACH CULTIRE. 

pieces of shingling lath of the required length, nailing 
two strips of the same material opposite each other on two 
of them for a step, and as many thus as there may be 
steps required, and a board across the top ones for a rest 
for the basket. Then take the other two pieces of lath, 
and connect them by single rods or rungs for the support, 
boring holes through them at the top for the connecting 
rod with the steps. The upper edges of the strips in the 
ladder proper serve instead of the regular step in the first 
described. In order to stand firmly, the ladder and sup- 
port are both wider at the bottom than at the top as the 
first. 

Various other contrivances are used for the same pur- 
pose. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

SHIPPING. 

In this, as in most other business, there is a class of 
men called sh'qypers. They are generally in connection 
with the consignees in the city, and divide the commissions. 
They are always identified with the local interest, and 
generally have the confidence of the j^lanters. They en- 
gage cars, employ hands to receive the fruit from the 
wagons, and store it properly in them. They are a very 
useful adjunct to the trade as at present conducted ; but 
if the railroad companies would do their duty, and employ 
faithful and efiicient agents in sufiicient force, tliere 
would be no need whatever of shippers^ so called, and 
the expense of their employment Avould be altogether 
saved to the planter. But, as these companies have hither- 
to failed altogether in their duty in this regard, shippers 



SHIPPING. 101 

are a necessity, except to the large planters, who can 
charter their own cars. For it will not justify a man who 
has only a few thousand baskets to sell, to go to much 
trouble and expense in order to get them to market ; and 
he, therefore, finds shippers both a convenience and a 
profit. 

The cars are prepared especially for the purpose. They 
are intended to carry five hundred baskets, weighing 
about sixteen thousand pounds. They are furnished with 
shelving to receive this quantity. The shelving consists 
of stays and boards to set the baskets on, so that one bas- 
ket does not rest on another, and thereby injure the fruit. 
It is a temporary, moval)le frame- work, taken down and 
set up at pleasure, and, in fact, at every loading. In filling 
a car, the fruit is received at the middle, and stowed away 
at each end ; the shelves being put up, as required, from 
rear to the center ; when filled, the doors are shut and 
locked, and so remain until they reach their destination. 
The cars are ventilated in order to keep the fruit from 
heating and rotting. When the weather is very dry, and 
the road dusty, considerable dust is introduced through 
the ventilators ; but, as the cars are at present constructed, 
it seems unavoidable. It is believed, however, that by a 
properly constructed and furnished car, this could be 
effectually prevented. For this reason it is much prefer- 
able to ship in boats where it is practicable. 

BOATS. 

r Shipping by boats, although always preferable where it 
can be done, is usually attended with more trouble in the 
first instance. The railroad is prompt, speedy, and punc- 
tual. All this the boats may also be, and usually are. But 
the railroad remains constant and continuously throughout 
the year. This the boats cnnnot be. Except during the 
peach season, there is no sufiicient trade to keep them 
employed, and lines have to be extemporized for the 



102 TEACH CLTLTUKE. 

occasion. This requires negotiation, correspondence, 
interviews, and some responsibility. Some people do not 
know how or where to go about it ; others, are too cau- 
tious to enter upon it ; while others, again, have not in- 
terest enough to undertake it. Were it not for the 
extortionate charges of the railroad companies, they would 
transport nearly all the peaches. As it is, the boats take 
a very respectable portion. These evils, however, will 
correct themselves as the importance of the trade increases. 
The boats will either make complete aiTangements for 
carrying from all accessible jwiiits ; or the companies 
will i-educe their rates by rail to a reasonable figure. At 
present the boats carry for fifty per cent less than the 
cars, and make more money than by any other freight. 
Such a business will soon attract the attention of steam- 
boat men seeking employment for their vessels ; especially 
as the liight of the peacii trade occurs at a season when 
there is usually a dearth in other freights. 



CHAPTER XX. 

PICKING. 

The planter, having procured his baskets, selected his 
route and means of transportation, and engaged his con^ 
signee, now patiently awaits the maturity of his fruit. 

The picking commences with the earliest varieties 
about the tenth of July, and the season closes with the 
latest about the end of September. 

But in old orchards there are often some trees that ripen 
their fruit in advance even of the earliest varieties. They 
are decayed or diseased, and the fruit is not perfect, and 
often small and of very inferior flavor. The peaches are 



PICKING. 103 

called "Prematures" and, although very inferior, sell for 
a good price, simply because they come in before any other. 
They are usually bought by keepers of restaurants for pies. 
We have seen them sent by express five hundied miles, 
and sold for from five to six dollars a crate, when they 
then would not have brought fifty cents at home. And 
afterwards, we have seen in the same market, the choicest 
ripe and luscious fruit of nearly a pound's weight, go a beg- 
ging for purchasers at two dollars per crate ! Such is the 
influence of circumstances. But to the planter, who raises 
fruit for profit, the " Prematures " are of more value than the 
mature peaches, and it is important to him to pick them 
as they ripen, and send them off. He must, therefore, 
provide for it in time. The quantity is so small, and the 
coming in so early, that no special peach transportation 
will have been provided ; he will, therefore, have to send 
by express or the ordinary freight. Some people suppose 
" Prematures " unhealthy : but we have used them habitu- 
ally in our family, for sauce and pies, without the slightest 
bad eflect ; and as they come in advance of the mature 
fruit, we relish them very much. We never use them 
uncooked ; and this leads us to say a word on unripe fruit. 
Some persons are so nervously anxious to get in early 
fruit before their neighbors, or so avaricious and indiffer- 
ent to the rights of others, that they will pick their fruit 
before it matures. This is an evil that must be corrected ; 
no just person will do it, because he knows it is wrong ; 
he knows it is not fit to use, and that he would not use it 
himself To sell it to others, is, therefore, a violation of 
the golden rule. But as some persons do not govern 
themselves by the principles of honor and religion, but 
only by those of pure selfishness, it is necessary for the 
community to protect itself against such. We therefore, 
advise every purchaser to reject all immature fruit. Buy 
it at no price. Let no commission man offer it ; and those 
avaricious sharks will soon find it unprofitable to ship 



104 PEACH CULTURE. 

immature fruit, and the market will not be burdened with 
it. Indeed it seems a sin against nature to pull a peach 
when only a little over half size, green, and bitter, when 
by leaving it on the tree a few days longer, it would in- 
crease in size, beautv, sweetness, and wholesomeness. 

Ten days or two weeks before picking commences in 
earnest, the planter looks up liis pickers. Their number 
will depend, of course, on the quantity of fruit ripening 
daily. If he has ten thousand assorted trees, ripening over 
the whole season, he will not need nearly so many as if he 
has the same number of a few varieties, ripening together, 
or nearly so. But suppose he has ten thousand trees. 
If old trees they will average, with a full crop, about 
three baskets to the tree; an aggregate of thirty thousand 
baskets. In a season of sixty days, this would give five 
hundred baskets a day. A hand is allov.ed to pick forty 
baskets, which would require a force of twelve hands, con- 
stantly employed in picking. If the fruit is of two or 
three varieties only, it Avill ripen in twenty days, and the 
force required will be thirty-six hands. If the trees are 
young, one basket to the tree will be about the average ; 
and less than one-third the force will be required, as it is 
easier picking from young trees than old. From these 
data, any one can estimate how many hands he will need. 

Expert, skillful hands are as valuable in this as in any 
other work, but in the large peach growing districts it is 
impossible to obtain them. When the planters are bless- 
ed with a full crop, every available man, woman, and child 
is in requisition ; and all they can do is to secure, as far 
as may be, trusty leaders who will have an eye to the in- 
experienced and careless. When engaged, they are to 
hold themselves in readiness to come on the first call. 

The fruit must be mature, but not ripe, when picked. 
If picked too soon, it will shrink by the time it gets to 
market ; the color will not be good ; the flavor will be 
worse ; and a poor price will be had. If picked too late, 



PICKING. 105 

the fruit will bruise in cartage ; the bruises will blacken ; 
some will rot, and the price will be no better than for the 
former. The greatest care is, then, necessary in deciding 
the exact time it should be picked. The expert will have 
little difficulty, as a glance of the eye, in most cases, will 
enable him to tell ; but the novice will often be puzzled, 
and will often make mistakes. Besides the size and color, 
the best test of maturity is the feel of the peach. In 
order to decide in a doubtful case, the picker should take 
the peach between his thumb and first and second fingers, 
and press it ; if it yields to the pressure, it is mature and 
may be picked. If it does not, it is yet too green ; while if 
the peach is indented by the pressure it is already ripe^ 
and cannot be safely shipped to a remote distance. This is 
the simplest and most reliable test we know. Indeed we 
regard it as infallible ; and fruit picked just when it be- 
gins to yield to the pressure may be shipped five or six 
hundred miles by express without danger. In most varie- 
ties, we may add, there is a peculiar transparency of the 
skin at maturity that enables the expert to say without 
hesitation that the fruit should be picked and he will 
very seldom need anything more to direct him. 

On the morning that the picking commences, the hands 
assemble at a designated place in the orchard ; and are form- 
ed into gangs of five, ten, or more ; and have certain rows 
allotted them. In forming gangs, care is taken that each 
has its proper proportion of skill, experience, and strength ; 
for it would be very injudicious to put all the good hands 
in one, and all the poor ones in another. Each gang is 
placed in charge of a leader, and each hand is furnished 
with one basket or more, and the picking begins. The 
light pickers mount the trees, the tall ones stand around the 
tops of the bending limbs, while the ladders are used to 
reach the fruit that cannot be gathered without them. 
It is a busy time, and nimble fingers make many ups and 
downs in securing the bright blushing fruit. Only such aa 



106 PEACH CULTURE. 

is sound and mature is pulled, and all under size, defec- 
tive, or spotted, is rejected. Hundreds of baskets, far 
sweeter, more wholesome, and prettier than the prema- 
tures, are suffered to rot under the trees, or fed to the 
hogs. 

When the baskets are full, they are kept under the 
trees, to be gathered up by men witli wagons or carts. 
Many planters send them immediately to the shipping 
depot, to be put aboard the boat or car that is to carry 
them to the market. But this is not the best way. A 
better plan, and the one adopted by experienced shippers, 
is to have careful, skillful, and experienced men in suffici- 
ent force to overhaul, and assort, and grade every basket. 
Where this is done, the cullers are provided in the orchard 
with stands made of loose boards laid across benches of 
the proper height. To these stands the pickers bring 
their baskets as soon as picked. The cullers examine 
every peach. If it is large and without fault, it is placed 
in one basket ; if sound and of medium size, in a second ; 
if sound but small, in a third ; and if too ripe, spotted, or 
otherwise defective, in a fourth. Others prefer doing 
this at the shipping point. Three grades of marketable 
fruit are thus prepared, and it is foimd by observa- 
tion and experience that it sells for much more than the 
same would do, if unassorted. Indeed, if two baskets of 
mixed fruit were sent to market with two others of pre- 
cisely similar quantity and quality, but well assorted, the 
probability is that the prime basket of the latter class 
would sell for as much money as both of the first. So 
much has appearance to do witli the price. In this place 
we suggest and recommend to j^lanters who expect to 
ship peaches annually, to paint their baskets of three 
different colors, to receive fruit of as many grades ; and 
always to put the same grade in the same color. In this 
way your consignees will be able to tell at a glance, what 



PICKIISTG. 107 

quality of peaches you have. But the same end may be 
attained by a proper discrimination in the manifest. 

FACING. 

Facing is an art. It consists in rounding up handsome- 
ly the top of the basket. For this purpose, a few of the 
larcfest, and his^hest colored peaches are laid aside in fill- 
ing it, and carefully placed on the top, to give a fine ap- 
pearance. It is the planter's art of displaying his goods. 
It is sometimes abused by the knavish, who put very in- 
ferior fruit in the bottom, and sometimes even of other 
varieties, and tlien "top off" with the very finest, in order 
to deceive the purchaser. But this is never done by the 
honest planter, but usually by middle men, who engage 
in shipping only for a season, and who have no sense of 
right and wrong, and no character to lose. The former 
simply does it to make a favorable impression, and al- 
ways, tacitly at least, warrants his fruit to be substan- 
tially the same throughout. 

During the picking season, the trees, as a rule, should 
be picked once a day at least ; some planters pick their 
orchards even twice a day, so rapidly does the fruit ma- 
ture in favorable weather, and sometimes every other day 
may suftice. 

WAGONS. 

The peach business has originated a Peach Wagon. 
This is used by large growers, and especially where the 
fruit has to be carried several miles to a shipping point. 
The genuine, full-sized peach wagon, will carry one hun- 
dred and fifty-six baskets, and is drawn by four draught 
horses. It is in all respects a substantial carriage. The 
wheels are heavy with a broad tread. The springs are 
strong, but very elastic. It is provided with a strong, 
light, flaring, frame bed, arranged with tiers of shelves or 
racks for the baskets. Baskets should never be allowed 



108 PEACH CULTURE. 

to stand on each other, as that would compress the fruit, 
and injure its appearance at least, if not its quality. The 
wagon is coupled long. The first tier will contain three rows 
of twelve baskets eacli ; the second and third five rows each 
of the same number ; in all one hundred and fifty-six. These 
wagons jam the fruit very little, and as they carry such 
enormous loads, are almost indispensable to large grow- 
ers. They cannot be taken into orchards, except where 
wide avenues have been purposely left for them. In other 
cases, they are brought to the entrance, and filled from 
Dearborns, as ships are at anchor from lighters from the 
shore. 



CHAPTER XXL 

RETURNS. 

To the planter, who cultivates for profit, the returns 
are the most interesting part of the business. These are 
accounts of sales rendered by the consignees, which 
are either daily or weekly as may be agreed upon. 
When the quantity daily shipped is large, the shipper 
usually requires daily accounts of sales; if small, weekly. 
These show the number of baskets received and sold ; if 
graded, so many of each grade ; and the price received. 
From these accounts, the shipper sees at a glance the con- 
dition of his business, and, if not satisfactory, can take 
Bteps to advance his interest, by shipping to another 
market, to another consignee, and so on. He is also in- 
formed by letter or telegram of the condition in which 
his fruit arrived ; the precise time when it arrived; and, 
if either has been faulty, he is thus advised how to cor- 
rect it. Letters are the usual medium of communication 
between shippers and consignees ; but the telegraph is 



KETURNS. 109 

often brought into requisition, especially in the height of 
the season. 

Once a week, at least, the shipper receives an account of 
the week's sales, and a check for the net proceeds. This 
latter is more specifically a return^ although the word is 
:ometimes applied indiscriminately to reports and returns. 
This account shows the daily receipts and sales for the 
week ; the price obtained ; and the aggregate amount. 

From it are deducted all charges, including freights. 
The balance is struck, and the check corresponds with 
this balance. Neglect to render these returns promj^tly 
is very annoying to planters and shippers, and very in- 
jurious to the interests of consignees, as it produces dis- 
content, destroys confidence, and ultimately ruins business. 

''EMPTIES." 

*' Empties " are the baskets and crates after the fruit is 
sold. We might almost as well restrict ourselves to baskets 
alone, for in point of fact the crates never come back. 
The return of " Empties " is a part of the business in 
great and general confusion, and needs immediate and 
radical reform. It is managed somewhat in this way : 
When the fruit is sold to reshippers, as much of it is, they 
furnish their own packages, into which it is placed from 
the original baskets. These empty baskets are now 
gathered up by the person charged with that special duty. 
They are set one in another. If he is competent and faith- 
ful, he will put every man's baskets in a separate bundle. 
Each bundle will contain, as near as may be, twenty-five 
baskets. These are tied tightly together by a strong 
cord, passed from one end of the bundle to the other. A 
card, with the owner's name and address, distinctly mark- 
ed thereon, is then tied on the top basket ; but should 
the card be omitted or torn ofi*, the baskets ought to go 



llO PEACH CULTURE. 

safely, as each basket has either the shipper's name in full, 
distinctly marked in large letters, or his initials, with his 
address. When thus prepared, they are placed in the 
cars which brought them, and returned free of charge to 
the owner. Under the present system this is the way, 
professedly, in which the business is managed ; but, the 
actual management, in most cases, is much worse. If the 
employe is careless, he mixes people's baskets, and the 
man whose name is on the card gets all, or has to assort 
them at the shii)ping point, and throw out what are not 
his, and the others hardly ever all get safely home. Some- 
times, they are so badly mixed that even baskets belong- 
ing to shippers living at different parts are tied together, 
and thrown out at the first station at which any one of 
them resides. All this is attributable to incompetency or 
carelessness, and mostly the latter. But there are other 
delinquencies more reprehensible still. Where the con- 
signee has a stand in market, much of the fruit is taken 
there to be sold to his customers at retail, and the prac- 
tice prevails to le7id the purchaser the basket to take 
home his fruit. He often forcrcts or nesrlects to return it, 
and the delay or loss flills on the shipper, when it should 
fall on the consignee. Sometimes the consignee gets 
paid, but the consignor seldom. Again, sometimes the 
consignee sells the basket with the fruit, and pockets the 
price, trusting to the well-known looseness with which 
this part of the business is managed for exemption from 
all charges either pecuniary or moral. 

The subject, however, is one that has lately elicited 
much interest and inquiry among growers, and these 
abuses are likely soon to be reformed. Shippers now in- 
sist that baskets shall be returned or paid for ; and con- 
signees of reputation, and who expect to remain in the 
business permanently, are acquiescing in the demand, and 
contracting accordingly. Growers also insist on prompti' 
tude in returning empties. Heretofore, it was thought that 



MARKETS. 1 1 1 

if they were returned any time during the season, or even 
after the season is over, it was sufficient. But this is no 
longer satisfiictory to planters, who very justly complain, 
and say, that the use of the basket, of which this delay de- 
prives them, is nearly as valuable as the basket itself; that 
baskets coming home at the end of the crop are not worth 
half what they were at the beginning ; and, moreover, 
are bleached and unattractive. If a basket sufficiently 
strong to carry safely, and costing only a few cents, 
could be made so that it might go with the fruit, a want 
would be supplied which has long been felt. In this 
case the purchaser would always have something to put 
his fruit in at a very small cost, which he would willingly 
incur for the convenience ; while a fruitful cause of vexa- 
tion and loss to the planter would be removed. 



CHAPTER XXn. 

MARKETS. 

New York city is the peach emporium of the East, 
and hither are sent four-fifths of the peaches raised on the 
Delaware Peninsula, and j^erhaps nine-tenths of all raised 
in Kew Jersey. A very large proportion of this is con- 
sumed in the city. The remainder is reshipped to Boston, 
Albany, Montreal, and other northern cities. 

Next to New York, stands Philadelphia. Her market 
is principally supplied from two sources. First, from 
peach growers residing near who, froni acquaintance and 
force of habit, prefer to send their fruit there, rather than 
to a more remote market even if prices are higher. Sec- 
ondly, from growers on the waters of the Chesapeake, 
who can ship in boats to Philadelphia, but not so conven- 



112 



PEACH CUl.TURE. 



iently to New York. These could reship in cars, but it 
would be attended with additional expense and delay, 
which the higher price might not always justify. 
The Philadelphia market is somewhat limited, and the 
shipments made thither seldom give as satisfactory returns 
as those to New York. 

Beyond these two cities very few peaches are shipped 
from the great peach growing centers. But planters are en- 
quiring whether they may not do better by seeking out 
more remote markets, and shipping directly to them, in- 
stead of allowing their fruits to fall into the hands of mid- 
dle men in New York ; and already, in years when the 
crop is very large, many are shipped to Boston and other 
northern towns. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

PROFIT. 

The profit of peach culture, either comparatively or ab- 
solutely, can only be approximated, and that in a general 
way. When we see a man, engaged in any business, ac- 
quiring more property, improving what he has, and sur- 
rounding himself with the luxuries and elegancies of life, 
we certainly conclude that the business is profitable, and 
that he iinderstands how to manage it. When we see 
another engaged in the same business working hard, going 
in debt, selling, it may be, a portion of his patrimony to 
relieve his present embarrassment, we conclude as certain- 
ly that his business is unprofitable or he does not under- 
stand it. So it is in peach culture. Whoever understands 
it and attends to it well, does well. We know no excep- 



PROFIT. 



113 



tions. But whoever plants an orchard, and lets the cat- 
tle destroy it, or the weeds overrun it, or the borer girdle 
it, or the poverty of his land starve it, must not be 
surprised if he fails to make a fortune. He must not ex- 
pect miracles. 

We have had some experience and more observation, 
and we are decidedly of opinion that no field crop will 
pay better than peaches ; but they will not pay as well as 
gai-dening and trucking where there is a convenient 

market. 

Take, as an illustration, an orchard of ten acres, one 
thousand trees, when the trees are four years old. The 
first cost of the trees and planting we estimate, and it is 
very nearly the truth, at - 1150.00 

Interest for four years - - 36.00 

Total expense till it comes in - 1186.00 

The product of the soil in corn, potatoes, etc., will equal 
the tillage of the trees, so that when they come in, the 
orchard will be in debt - - - $186.00 

We estimate the first crop of peaches at one thou- 
sand baskets, more or less, which are worth to the 
planter, on the tree, forty cents, - - 1400.00 

This pays the old debt and interest, and leaves $214.00 
The second year there may be only two hun- 
dred baskets; but owing to a scanty crop, the 
price is doubled and the planter gets eighty cents 
a basket on the trees, - - - $160.00 

' The thii-d season, a full crop, three thousand 
baskets, worth forty cents, - - - $1,200.00 

The fourth year is a total failure - - 

Four years then give a net income of $1,574.00 

Which is equal to an annual rent of - $393.50 

Or an annual rent per acre of - - $39.35 



114 PEACH CULTURE. 

These estimates are made on the basis of good land and 
good tillage. In tlie absence of either or both, the profits 
will be much reduced ; while by extra culture, skill, and 
care in gathering the fruit at tlie jjroper time, and send- 
in JX it to the best market, they mav be increased, but in 
the present state of cultivation and maikets, they are 
above the average. 

Hence it follows, that land which will yield forty dol- 
lars an acve,per annum, should not be planted in peaches. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

CULTURE AFTER A CROP. 

The culture after a crop should be prompt, careful and 
generous. A first class orchard of a hundred acres may 
have netted its owner ten ttiousand dollars in a single sea- 
son. But say it is only six thousand, or even five, and 
he can still afford to return to the soil that lias been so 
productive a considerable portion of this, and have a 
handsome sum left. The liberal and intelligent planter 
Mill do so cheerfully, and thus not only improve greatly 
the appearance of his trees, but also do much towards in- 
suring a crop the next year ; while the niggardly and 
sl.ort-sighted, will pocket all the present gains and leave 
his trees to take care of themselves or starve. Good cul- 
ture will pay as well with peaches as any thing else ; and 
the old proverb : " Always taking out of the meal tub, 
and never putting any thing in, you will soon come to the 
bottom," is as applicable to them as to the family Hour- 
chest. 

As soon as the last peach is gathered, the hogs should 
be turned in to eat up the refuse. Two purposes will be 



CULTURE AFTER A CROP. 115 

effected by this. Tlie hogs will fatten on the decayed and 
imperfect fruit, and multitudes of embryo insects will be 
destroyed. Besides they will root about the trees, and 
do almost as much good as a plowing. If there are no 
hogs at hand, the refuse should be gathered up and re- 
moved ; but this is seldom done ; and the more common 
way is to leave all on the ground, and run the risk. 

The next thing is, to remove carefully all feeble, dead, 
and broken limbs. This should quickly follow the peach 
harvest. The feeble limbs are such as are near the ground, 
on lower branches, and have been so far deprived of the 
sap by the upper and more vigorous ones as to become 
unfruitful. They would soon die at any rate, and it is 
better to remove them at once, and thus give more room, 
as well as more sap to the thrifty and fruit-bearing ones. 
After a bountiful crop, many broken limbs w^ill be found ; 
sometimes even the whole tree wall be demolished, and 
apparently ruined. By careful and judicious pruning, 
however, much may be done to repair the injury and re- 
store the tree to its former beauty and productiveness. In 
a healthy tree, the vital forces of the roots are in exact 
proportion to the superficial drafts of the top. When the 
top is partially removed, the demand on the root is just 
so far diminished. There is then a superabundance of 
vital power, continually seeking a channel in an effort to 
restore the proper equilibrium. In consequence of this, 
the remaining branches are stimulated to extraordinary 
growth, and new buds shoot, and new branches are form- 
ed. If the whole top has been removed, the disparity be- 
tween the root and the stem is so great that the latter puts 
out buds in all directions, and soon becomes one mass of 
twigs and leaves. In this w^ay shade trees are often trained, 
their foliage thickened, and their appearance improved. By 
attention to this principle in arboriculture, the injured fruit- 
tree may soon be almost restored to its original beauty 
and usefulness. We have seen this illustrated at least 



116 PEACH CULTURE. 

twice in our own experience. The first case was that of 
a beautiful young Bellflower apple tree, tlie one-half of 
which broke down under an enormous load of fruit the 
third year after coming in. It grew near a higli board 
fence, and so equally was it divided into two branches, 
that had it not been for the fence, we believe both would 
have parted, and fallen in opposite directions. As it 
was, only one could fall, but in doing so, it split the stem 
down to witliin less than two feet of the ground. So great 
was the injury that we seriously thought of digging it up 
altogether, and planting another in its stead ; but we did 
not. Although broken down, it did not separate from 
the main stem, and the fruit matured well. When it was 
gathered, we removed the f dlen branch neatly ; cut away 
a few of the lower limbs on the opposite side, shortened-in 
a few others, and awaited the result. The next spring, 
young brandies began to shoot on the injured side ; they 
grew^ very rapidly, filled up the vacancy, new^ wood cov- 
ered the wound, so that at the end of two years, no one, 
unaware of the accident, would have suspected that the 
now beautiful tree had ever sustained injury. 

The other, was that of some natural peach trees in full 
bearing that we wished to transform into choice varieties 
of budded fruit. For this purpose we cut off the entire 
tops just above the spread, and budded on the young 
wood the next fall. Two years after, the tops were as 
lar2;e, and much handsomer than when removed. 

The planter must not conclude that because his tree is 
broken down it is, therefore, destroyed. By proper atten- 
tion it may soon be restored ; and when we reflect that 
two larije crops scarcely ever follow each other iu succes- 
sion, we will see that the loss is really but trivial. 

As soon as the pruning is over, the trash is cleanly 
gathered up and hauled away to some vacant spot to be 
burned. 

After this the root of every tree is carefully examined 



CULTURE AFTER A CROP. 117 

for the borers, and every one vmrelentingly destroyed. 
The ground is then nicely plowed, and cultivated down, 
as heretofore described. This should all be done by the 
first of October. But sometimes the ripening of late 
fruit retards the plowing. In such case, the pruning and 
plowing, may properly be deferred; but the worming 
never can. This must not be neglected if you value 
fine trees, and wish to preserve them. In a well attended 
orchard, the labor will be very light ; for, owing to the 
vigilance of the planter, fe*w worms will ever obtain a 
lod foment in his trees. After tlie examination of each 
tree, the soil is carefully replaced, so that the tender neck 
of the stem is not exposed. 

After the fall plowing, some planters give their peach 
orchard a top-dressing of lime ; others, later in the season, 
of barn-yard manure; others, again, one of wood-ashes or 
superphosphate about the roots. These are all excellent ; 
and, where it can be done, should not be omitted. But 
all are more or less expensive, and planters, for the most 
part, rely on tillage alone, and some even stint that. We 
believe that any orchard tliat is worth keeping at all is 
worth good culture, and that it is true economy to apply 
lime, phosphate, and manure to tlie extent of the reasona- 
ble requirements of the orchard and the planter's ability. 

Whatever dressing the orchard gets, it should be in the 
fall. The reason of this is, that the fertilizers will dissolve, 
soak in, and reach the roots during the winter, and in 
time to stimulate and strengthen the next year's growth ; 
and, if the other conditions be favorable, greatly tend to 
the production of a crop. 

Later in the season, especially if the ground is weedy 
or grassy, the orchard must be cultivated. In ordinary 
cases, once will do, but sometimes it may require two 
dressings. The weeds, or grass, must not be permitted 
to grow, but the ground should be kept clear and smooth 
as a floor. There is often a narrow strip, between the 



118 PEACH CULTURE. 

trees in the same row, not caught l>y the plow ; this must 
be leveled with the cultivator or hoe. 

We need scarcely say to the tasteful planter, that the 
head rows and corners should be kept scrupulously clean. 

The culture the next spring is as described for young 
orchards. 



CHAPTER XXY. 

USES. 

As a dessert the peach is a universal favorite, and in its 
season has no rival. It is the Queen of Delicacies. It 
ripens in perfection only in the glow of a midsummer's 
sun ; and tlie liotter the weather, the more delicious are 
its rich cooling juices. It is eminently suited to the 
season. When the weather is so hot that even eating is 
a labor, the })eaeh is acceptable, for it melts in the mouth 
without exertion. It is perfectly healthy, and even me- 
dicinal. We have known it to effect a complete and al- 
most immediate cure in dysentery and diarrh(ra. It may be 
eaten at meals, which is perha|)S the best time, or between 
meals ; raw or cooked ; in sauce or pies ; marmalade or pre- 
serves ; with cream and sugar, or without — almost any way 
— but never green or decayed. As it is most delicious and 
healthy when ripe and sound, so it is most unpalatable 
and pernicious when green or decayed. 

Eating when ripe is the best, as well as the most agree- 
able way of using peaches ; probably nine-tenths of all 
raised are eaten in their ripe and uncooked states. 

But vast quantities are also canned, and numerous 
establishments turn out, respectively, several hundred 
thousand cans every season. These are shipped to all i)arts 



USES. 119 

of the world ; and many tastes are gratified with the 
canned fruit that never knew, and never will know, the 
delight of a ripe, uncooked peach. 

Some are preserved for domestic use, and are consid- 
ered amongst the very best of conserves. 

Formerly small, inferior, and even half rotten peaches, 
as well as the parings thrown out by the canners, were 
distilled into peach brandy, and quite a quantity was used 
up in this way ; but since the discovery of the Alden 
and other processes of evaporation, and the invention of 
various evaporators, very little is used in this way ; and 
that only of the very worst sort. 

The evaporated fruit is found to be one of the best, if 
not the very best, forms in which it can be preserved ; and 
when there is a crop, tons of dried peaches are put up in 
every neighborhood. Indeed, in localites, almost every 
planter has an evaporator, and some of them several. 
This is found to be of great advantage, and in many ways. 
When the crop is very abundant, large quantities are 
used in this way ; a glut in the market is prevented, and 
better prices are obtained for what is sent. Then the fruit 
preserved by this method will keep. It may be packed 
away and shipped when there is leisure, or when good 
prices can be obtained, while ripe peaches, in their natural 
state, must be shipped and sold at once. Besides, evap- 
orated peaches are a most delicious and wholesome lux- 
ury, one that will surely make its ov^n way after the 
first Introduction. Indeed, desiccated peaches are now 
so popular, that they are usually all engaged as soon 
as dried, and often before. They always bring good 
prices, and are growing in popularity every year. The 
average price for evaporated peaches, of good quality, is 
about thirty cents a pound. We now speak of peeled 
ones, Unpeeled fruit does not bring half so much, imd 
should not, for only the very inferior is dried without 
peeling. Desiccated peaches may be procured at almost 



120 PEACH CULTUEE. 

any good family grocery store, done up in neat boxes. 
The white colored are preferred ; but this only shows the 
ignorance of the purchasing public. The purest and best 
are of a light amber color. This is the dried peach in its 
natural state. The white have been bleached by the use 
of sulphur. This is done by evaporators in self-defence, 
as the white fruit will always sell better, and at a higher 
price, than the amber. The difference is usually from 
two to four cents a pound. It is contended that the 
bleaching does no harm, and, therefore, is an innocent 
concession to a popular prejudice. All the sulphur con- 
tained in the fruit may not render it unhealthf ul, but, to 
our taste, it does take away part of its delicate flavor, and 
renders it less palatable ; and, for this reason, we never 
use any bleached fruit. 

We might occupy a long chapter in describing the 
evaporators and the manner of using them ; but it would 
not add to the practical advantage of this little treatise. 
We will simply say that there are perhaps a dozen 
patented ones, every one of which claims to possess some 
special advantage, and nearly all of which are really good. 
A planter, in making a selection, will be governed, in a 
great measure, by his requiremants. If he has a great 
many peaches, he will want a large one ; if only a few, a 
small one. They range through a wide field, both in 
capacity and cost. The smallest and cheape^-t may cost 
twenty-five dollars ; the largest, perhaps, three thousand. 
The first will require the attention of a single person ; the 
latter of a hundred or more. 

It is said by those who make a business of preserving 
peaches in this way that, when peaches cost more than 
forty cents a basket, they can not be desiccated at a 
profit, but below this they may. 

The leaves of the peach, bruised and distilled, yield a 
liquor used for flavoring cookery. When steeped in spirits 
they impart that peculiar flavor, called noyau. 



USES. 121 

Four pounds of peach blossoms distilled in a water bath, 
will yield twelve ounces of a whitish liquor, sweet to the 
taste, and agreeable to the smell, much resembling bruised 
peach kernels. This liquor is a strong perfume, and a 
few drops will very agreeably scent a large quantity of 
any other liquor or substance with which it commingles. 
The buds yield the same liquor, but not of so delicate a 
flavor. 



122 PEACH CULTURE. 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

INSECTS AND DISEASES. 

But little is yet settled in regard to diseases of the 
peach. Is it really subject to any inherent disease, or 
are its maladies accidental ; that is, superinduced by ex- 
traneous causes? We incline to the latter opinion. 
Most of thera we know are ; and we are not certain 
that any are not. The Yellows is the only known 
one of which we doubt ; and about it very little is known 
either as to origin or treatment. It is generally regarded 
as incurable, and eradication is the only remedy recom- 
mended. Cultivators should observe closely, experiment 
extensively, and report fully. In this way more reliable 
data will be obtained, and, it is hoped, a remedy dis- 
covered. 

THE BORER. 

The 'Borer (^geria exitiosa), is the most common, as it 
is the most troublesome enemy of the peach on the Peninsu- 
la; and vet, if looked after in time, it is very easily subdued, 
and need in no wise seriously interfere with cultivation. 
But, if allowed to intrench itself in our orchards, it Mill 
not only require time and labor to rout it, but even this 
will only be effected by constant vigilance and with con- 
siderable loss. Hence, the planter should never permit 
it to obtain a footing in his young orchard, but upon 
its first appearance destroy it utterly. To exclude 
the borer, he has only to carefully examine his trees every 
spring and fall, and wherever he finds one, destroy it. If 
this rule is strictly followed, his labor will be very light, 
and his trees will never be permanently injured. But if 
he neglects this, as is so often the case, until the borer is 



INSECTS AND DISEASES. 



123 




Fig. 17.— BORER. 
MALE. 



established in the tree, the labor of extermination will not 
only be increased ten-fold, but he will suffer the pain of 
seeing some of his handsomest trees enfeebled; and, if the 
most prompt and vigorous measures are not adopted, 
they will die. 

The Borer is, when fully developed, a slender, dark- 
blue, four-winged, wasp-.sliaped insect. Figure 17 gives the 
male, and fig. 18 the female perfect in- 
sect. It does not enter the tree in this 
shape, but about the middle of June 
commences to deposit its eggs on the 
tender bark of the tree, at the surface of 
the ground, and, occasionally, through- 
out the summer, sometimes even as late 
as October. These eggs hatch, as the season advances, 
into small white grubs or borers^ about one inch long 

when fully grown, and an eighth 
of an inch in diameter. These 
penetrate the bark, and burrow in- 
to the sap wood, where they re- 
main all winter. In the spring, or 
early summer, they emerge in their 
Fig. 18.— BORER.— FEMALE, perfcct, wlugcd form, and soon 
commence depositing eggs for another generation. 

During their stay in the tree, they devour voraciously 
the bark and sap wood, and one or two are sufficient to 
destroy a young tree in a single season, and four or five, 
an old one. Their inroads are very insidious, and some- 
times the first notice the planter has of their presence is 
the blighting of his tree, which soon withers and dies. 
The work being done in the dark, under the bark, and the 
gum piled around the neck of the tree, the insect is com- 
pletely concealed, and the injury unsuspected until, like 
an exploded mine, the bleached and withered leaves give 
unmistakable evidence of its fatal presence. But a little 
experience will soon enable any one to detect the borer. 




124 PEACH CULTURE. 

The most certaiti and obvious sign is the gum at the neck 
of the tree. Whenever this appears, you may certainly 
conclude the borer is entrenched. But sometimes very 
little gum, if any, indeed, may be there, and still this 
treacherous enemy may be destroying the very vitals of 
your beautiful and productive tree. But, generally, there 
will be a disturbed, raised, or loose ap|)earance of the 
ground immediately around the neck of the tree. When 
this is the case, inspect carefully. On the other hand, if 
the surface of the ground is flat, close, compact and hard 
at the neck, you may almost certainly conclude that no 
borer is there. One accustomed to examine for, and de- 
stroy these grubs, can tell at a glance whether or not the 
borer is present. Several remedies have been prescribed 
for the borer ; but the best yet discovered, where the insect 
has penetrated to the wood, is 

A Hoe, a Bill-hooked Knife, and a Punch, — The first 
to scrape away the earth from the root ; the second to 
cut away the gum and decayed bark and wood ; and the 
last to kill the borer. The knife should be large, strong and 
shaip. Either a pruning or butcher knife does very well. 
The punch may be of hard, seasoned wood or heavy wire ; 
but a whalebone one is the best, because it is pliable and 
elastic, and may be thrust into a curving cavity, when a 
straight one could not, and thus reach the borer without 
cutting away tlie wood. JBut the borer must he destroyed 
at all events. There must be no truce, no mercy, if you 
wisii to save your tree. If you leave even one, it will 
probably be tlie deatii of your tree, for it will eat, and 
eat away, until it has destroyed it. The greatest care 
should be taken to remove all. Sometimes quite a num- 
ber will be found in one tree. Five and six are not 
at all unfrequent ; and even more will sometimes be 
found. In removing the borer, the operator should be 
careful not to bruise or cut away any of the sound bark 
or wood, as it will all be little enough for the renovation 



INSECTS AND DISEASES. 125 

of the tree ; but all tho dead and diseased wood and bark 
should be carefully removed, so that the new growth may- 
cover over the old wound as soon as possible. After the 
operation, the soil should be drawn up to the neck of the 
tree again, in order to prevent the sun and dry winds 
from cracking the bark in the summer, or the severe frosts 
from chilling: it in the winter. 

Boiling Water is recommended by some as a very 
safe, simple and effectual remedy. We have never tried 
it ourselves, and cannot speak from experience ; but we 
have no doubt of its beneficial effects when judiciously 
applied. But whether it is as good as the one we have 
just described, and, if as good, as cheap, we do not know. 
It is applied in various ways, the simplest of which is to 
pour it all around the neck of the tree affected, so that it 
may flow into, and fill up, every hole, thus destroying the 
borer in its retreat. Our doubt of the complete success 
of this method arises in the fear we have that the borer 
will not be reached by the scalding flood, and, conse- 
quently, often escape. It often, on entering a tree, 
ascends^ and its course is shielded, as well as concealed, 
by the bark. Now, how is the water to reach it heie ? 
Will it not be shed by this panoply, and the insect remain 
secure in his double- walled fortress ? 

Another cultivator applies the water in this way : 
" Take a piece of half-inch lead pipe, say three feet long ; 
bend one end to nearly a right angle, and fit the same to 
the borer's hole, the main length of the pipe standing 
perpendicularly ; place a funnel in the top, and fill the 
pipe with boiling water ; the borer will soon be dead, 
while the tenderest tree will not be injured by the process." 
This is a very complete, effectual, and highly artistic 
method, but we fear the time consumed in fitting the pipe 
to the hole, and the funnel to the pipe, with the trouble 
of finding the hole, and waste of water, would be dis- 



126 PEACH CULTURE. 

couragingly tedious to a planter who had ten thousand 
trees to examine in a few days. 

Waste Water from Salt-works has also been men- 
tioned with favor by some. We have never used it, or 
seen it used, but we feel safe in recommending its trial 
in moderation, when at hand ; care ought to be exercised 
in its application, especially to young trees, as these acrid, 
mineral liquids often prove injurious, and sometimes 
fatal, to vejretable life. With this caution, let it be tried 
whenever it will be economy to use it. The difficulty in 
the application of all liquids is to reach the borer. It is 
often so deeply burrowed in the wood of the tree as scarcely 
to be found, even with knife and puncli, and is perfectly 
secure against water, except it be a deluge. 

Oil, diffused in A^'ATER, and applied with a syringe, 
has been recommended as a protection against all noxious 
insects, the borer among the rest. It is affirmed that a 
single drop of sweet oil, applied to the back of a wasp or 
hornet, produces almost instant death ; and that a very 
small quantity is sufficient, when diluted, to destroy myr- 
iads of insects. It is said it closes up the breathing-pores, 
and the insect dies for want of air. However destruc- 
tive it may be to wasps and hornets, we can not, with- 
out further trial, conclude that it will be equally so to 
the borer, whose habits of life ai-e so entirely different. 
The one delights in sunshine, moves on wings, and lives 
in air, while the other burrows into the solid wood, where 
light never penetrates, and seals himself up hermetically 
with impervious gum. Still, the smell of the oil, espe- 
cially of coal oil, may be useful in keeping off the fly or 
moth, if applied at the season it deposits its eggs. 

Sheathing the tree avith paper, straav, or cloth, 
anything that will prevent the embryo worm from ob- 
taining a lodgment in the bark of the tree, has been tried 
with success; and, if attended to in the pioper time, 



il 



INSECTS AND DISEASES. 127 

about tlie middle of June, and kept on until the danger is 
past, about the middle of October, will prove a complete 
preventive. But if the borer had already obtained a lodg- 
ment, or the eggs had been deposited before the tree was 
bandaged, or the bandage was not impervious, it will 
prove no protection, or, an insufficient one. 

If paper be used, it should be wrapped once and a half, 
or twice, around the tree, so as to leave no place of in- 
gress for the insect, and should extend two inches below, 
and six above the ground, and be securely tied to keep it 
in its place. It may be secured at the lower end by sim- 
ply scraping away the dirt the required depth, wrapping 
the paper around, and then drawing the dirt back, and 
pressing it down firmly. The method of applying straw, 
cloth, or other material, is the same. 

Akin to this remedy is that of scraping w^ piles of dirt 
around the tree^ in early summer, and leaving them until 
fall. This is on the same principle, and answers the same 
end if well done, and constantly maintained ; but they 
must not be permitted to wear away by summer showers. 
Lime or wood-ashes are better than dirt for this purpose, 
as neither is so liable to abrasion, and both are excellent 
fertilizers. 

THE CUKCULIO. 

This most destructive and dreaded of all enemies of 
fruit has never yet troubled our peaches on the Peninsula, 
and consequently we have no practical experience oi" ob- 
servation in regard to it. We are thankful for our ex- 
emption ; and ignorance, in this instance, at least, is 
undoubtedly bliss. But in Ohio, and probably elsewhere 
in the West, it has become very troublesome and injuri- 
ous. The Curculio, Plum- Weevil {Hhy nchoemis Nenu- 
phar)^ is a small, dark-brown, winged beetle, with white, 
yellow and black spots. It is quite small, never exceed- 



128 



PEACH CtTLTURE. 



ing a quarter of an inch in length, and often not so long. 
It has two humps on its back, and is provided with a rela- 
tively long throat and bill, which fills between its fore- 
legs when in repose. In fig. 19 we give a much magnified 
drawing of the curculio attacking a plum. When in a 
tree, a sudden jar will cause it to fall down as if dead, 
rolled up ball-like. Some suppose that it hardly ever 
leaves the tree upon which it first finds itself; and 
this opinion is, in part, sustained by the method of its 

reproduction, the larvce 
being carried to, and 
hatched in the ground 
through the medium of 
the spoiled fruit. Others, 
on the contrary, contend 
that it is migratory, and 
travels over a large space 
— an entire orchard, at 
least, or even many or- 
chards. This view^ is 
strengthened by the fact 
that it is furnished with 
wings, which seem natu- 
rally to indicate both 
Fig. 19.— CURCULIO UPON A PLUM. disposltlou and ability to 

fly. Its cliaracter and habits are not yet fully known. 
Enough, however, has already been learned to make it 
the bane and terror of all fruit growers. Closer observa- 
tion and experience, it is hoped, may yet discover an 
eflicient protection against its ravages. None such has 
yet been found. 

As soon as the fruit begins to set, and for weeks after- 
wards, this pestiferous beetle commences its work of ruin 
by making a minute puncture in the young fruit. In 
this the ^^g of the grub is deposited. It grows with the 
fruit until it becomes so large as to destroy the vitality 




INSECTS AND DISEASES. 129 

of the latter, which drops from the stem, and the larva 
finds its way into the soil, undergoes another transforma- 
tion, and reappears the next spring as the little winged 
beetle above described. This is the usual process and re- 
sult with the plum, its favorite object of attack ; but with 
the larger and hardier fruits, such as apples, pears, and 
peaches, the effect is not so fatal. The nature and char- 
acter of the attack is the same, but owing to the size and 
vigor of the fruit, they are better able to resist and sur- 
vive it. The consequence is that they are only spoiled, 
or partially destroyed. 

It was once supposed by some that as soon as the fruit 
was well set, the danger from the curculio was over ; and 
that if it could be protected for two or three weeks from 
the time of the f dl of the blossom, the fruit would be 
safe. But a better acquaintance with its habits has shown 
that it continues its ravages throughout the summer, and 
nearly, if not quite, to the ripening of the fruit ; and 
this is especially true with the tenderer sorts, so that 
nothing short of destruction or banishment to the de- 
stroyer will save the fruit. 

The loss to horticulture from this enemy alone can 
hardly bo overestimated. It has almost banished plums 
from our gardens, and changed hope and expectation into 
fear and despair. When we think of the rich Golden 
Drops, the delicious Gages, and the splendid Jeffersons, 
which this inveterate and malignant foe has snatched al- 
most from our lips, our disappointment and vexation 
know no bounds. But should it, with like malignity, invade 
our peach plantations, we should be driven to despair. 

Formerly, it was supposed that the character of the 
soil determined, in a great measure, whether or not the 
curculio w^ould be troublesome ; and it was supposed that 
stifi' clay lands were a preventive, while light, sandy ones 
were conducive, to its propagation and increase. Later 
observations and experience, liowever, have demonstrated 



130 PEACH CULTURK 

that the character of the soil has very little, if any, influ- 
ence on it. 

Many remedies have been tried and abandoned, and 
many more are still recommended as worthy of yet fur- 
ther tri.'il. We are sorry we have none that we can recom- 
mend with confidence. Such as they are, we state them. 
If not effectual, they may still prove useful, in a measure. 
Let planters observe, note, and experiment. It is a bad 
disease that has no cure. The end is so valuable and de- 
sirable, we should never despair of attaining it. 

1. Jar the thee, axd kill the ixsect. — This is one 
of the oldest and most effective of any proposed, but, at 
the same time, tedious, expensive, and, on a large scale, 
almost impracticable. The mode is to saw off one of 
the lower branches, leaving a stump about half an inch 
long ; then spread sheets under the tree early every 
morning, during the season the curculio is troublesome, 
and, with a wooden mallet, give the stump two or three 
sharp strokes. The tree is thus suddenly jarred, and the 
insects, dislodged, fall upon the sheets, and are gathered 
up and destroyed. Dr. Hall, of Illinois, has a contriv- 
ance like a large umbrella opened and inserted upon a 
wheel-barrow. The umbrella or expanded portion has an 
opening in one side, to admit the trunk of the tree. The 
barrow is propelled in such a manner as to strike against 
the tree and jar it; the expanded canvas portion being 
then in a position to catch any insects or injured fruit that 
may fall. This may do for gardens, but what peach plant- 
er, with his thousand or ten thousand trees, would think 
of it. 

2. Bandage the trees. — Some use these in the belief 
that the curculios climb up the stem of the tree, and that 
the bands arrest their progress, and detain them until 
they can be caught and killed. The bands are made of 
wool, cotton, or rope, dipped in coal or gas tar, and are 



INSECTS AND DISEASES. 131 

tied around the main stem, just below the branches, and 
sometimes also around the main branches themselves. 
The smell of the tar may be as eifectual as the bands 
themselves. 

3. A Trap. — We have heard of a curculio Trap^ made 
in the shape of a bag, and hung in the tree ; but we have 
neither seen nor heard it described, and are, consequently, 
unable to speak of its merits, 

4. Offensive Odors. — It has been discovered that 
most insects that infest orchards are more or less affected 
by disagreeable odors ; hence it is proposed to hang up 
in the branches of trees, during the incursion of the cur- 
culio, cobs or some other convenient thing, dipped in gas 
or coal tar, and strung upon a wire, and thus drive them 
away. This remedy is plausible, and may be very ser- 
viceable in many instances of insect invasion ; but, so far, 
there seems to be " no enchantment " against this most 
pestilential of all the insect tribe. Besides, it is tedious 
and inconvenient when used on a large scale. 

5. Destroy the Fallen Fruit. — As the injured fruit 
falls to the ground with the grub in it, it is a very effectu- 
al and convenient way to turn hogs into the orchard to 
eat it up. This is a remedy without objection, and may 
at all times be resorted to with safety and economy. If 
it does not prove entirely successful, it will, doubtless, 
greatly mitigate the evil. Let no infected fruit remain 
in your orchards. 

6. Whitewash the ground. — Governed by instinct, it 
is said the curculio will never deposit its eggs where they 
cannot be hatched — hence, not over water or paved yards^ 
nor whitevmshed. surfaces. From this hint cultivators 
have experimented, and it is now affirmed by many that 
trees overhanging any of these are exempt. In view of 
t\n&^ whitewashing thQ ground is proposed as an infallible 
remedy. It is, no doubt, excellent ; for even if it should 

6* 



132 PEACH CULTURE. 

fail to drive away the curculio, it will prove an excellent 
fertilizer for the trees. But if it can be applied without 
too much expense, we think it may prove valuable as a 
remedy. The ground should first be plowed, harrowed 
and rolled, so as to make tlie surface as smooth and fine 
as practicable. The finely pulverized limo may then be 
sown broadcast, just when the trees are shedding their 
blossoms, or the surface m:iy be whitewashed with it in a 
liquid state. But we fear the trouble, expense, and lia- 
bility to be absorbed will deter large planters from trying it. 

7. Paving and planting over water. — These rest on 
the same principle — that instinct teaches the insect that 
its seed will be destroyed if deposited above them. From 
whatever cause, it is claimed by some that trees hanging 
over the edge of a lake, or with paved yards under them, 
will not be visited by the curculio, but this is as emphati- 
cally denied by others. 

8. Lime and Sulphur. — This is a mixture of eighteen 
double handfuls of sulphur to a barrel of ordinary white- 
wash, made of unslaked lime. The mixture must be re- 
duced by water to a consistency capable of being used 
with a syringe. It should be applied three times a week, 
for four weeks, commencing with the fall of the blossom. 
As the sediment falls to the bottom, more water may be 
poured in as the liquid part is used, until the whole be 
consumed. 

We have given these several remedies, and hope they 
may be found useful, but with only limited confidence in 
their efticiency or utility. A cheap, convenient, and certain 
remedy for curculio is a desideratum most earnestly 
wished for, but a blessing which has not yet been con- 
ferred. 

YELLOWS. 

The Yellows is very little known on the Peninsula ; 
BO little as to have given neither trouble nor uneasiness 



INSECTS AND DISEASES. 133 

SO far. What little we have seen of it, is supposed to 
have been introduced from New Jersey, where it has 
been very destructive. In consequence of this, few trees 
are purchased in Jersey, but reared at home. 

CAUSE. 

This, as yet, is a subject of speculation. Various opinions 
have been expressed, and various theories advanced. We 
have no sufficient data to enable us to speak unhesitating- 
ly, but we believe its primary cause is had cultivation. 
By this we mean that in its cultivation the essential con- 
ditions of a healthy tree and fine fruit have been overlook- 
ed or disresfarded. This has been throusrh iofnorance. 
Cultivators neither observed nor read. At an early day 
in tills country the Yellows was unknown ; and in newly- 
cleared districts, it is yet unknown, save only where 
it has been introduced by diseased trees. It has never 
prevailed or been troublesome, except in places where 
the peach has been long and extensively cultivated 
as in New Jersey, and, perhaps, a few other places. From 
this we may reasonably conclude that the essential condi- 
tions of a healthy tree and fine fruit are non-existent ; that 
the supply of tree nourishment is deficient, and the tree be- 
comes feeble and diseased, and, finally, dies of starvation. 
It is a case of arbor-consumption. It is then constitutional 
and chronic ; and not only so, but contagious, so far, that it 
affects those in its immediate vicinity. It is a well-known 
fact in agriculture, that by successive crops of one variety 
of grain, the soil is exhausted of the essential elements for 
the production of that variety, and that the crops must 
be changed, or the yield will gradually dwindle down to 
nothing, or the exhaustive process must be counteracted 
by fresh supplies of the aliment consumed. Hence, arises 
the practice of rotating crops, and also of using concen- 
trated fertilizers. By the first, we use a different feeder 



•^^^ PEACH CULTURE. 



to consume a different aliment ; by the latter, we use the 
same feeder, but introduce a new supply of the same ali- 
ment. But, as all plants consume a portion of the same 
ahment, the rotation practice can not be pursued indefinite- 
ly without losing the highest benefit ; but the soil must 
be enriched occasionally by fresh supplies of the incrre- 
dieuts extracted. So it is in arboriculture ; for while ft is 
true that the leaves and rotten wood do much to supply 
nourishment for the forest growth, yet it is equally true, 
that they are not equivalent to the special aliment con- 
sumed. If the whole forest were leveled at once, and 
allowed to rot where it fell, it would, probably, be an 
equivalent, and the soil would then be prepared to produce 
and sustain another crop of the same variety. But not 
so, if the forest has been cut down, and carried away. 
Do this, in any instance, and see if the next growth will 
be the same as that removed. Xot at all ; but a totally 
different variety. If the first was pine, the next will 
likely be oak, and vice versa. 

We have seen beautiful illustrations of this in several 
mstances. We will mention one. Some twenty years 
ago, a forest of white oak, of very heavy growth, was re- 
moved for the timber. Very soon after, the whole 
tract was covered with a thick growth of young white 
pme, while not a single young tree of the ''former 
growth could be seen ; and yet it was many miles from the 
pme region proper, and only a few scatterin^r trees were 
in the neighborhood. This effort of Nature to restore the 
eqiuhbrium furnishes the key to the apparent difiiculty. 
Ihe peach was a profitable crop, and planters were 
very loth to change it for anything else, and too avari- 
cious to return any portion of their profits to the soil that 
had produced them. The consequence was their orchards 
became diseased for the want of food, and literally died of 
starvation. And it is no wonder, no remedy has been dis- 
covered, because the nature of the disease was never 



INSECTS AND DISEASES. 135 

known. What medicine does a famishing man want, but 
wholesome food ? But when a whole district is cultivated 
in peaches until the soil is exhausted, the tree famine be- 
comes general, and it also becomes almost impossible to 
supply the necessary food for all ; then nothing better 
can be done than to cease planting, and let the old and 
diseased die. It is only adding to, and perpetuating the 
calamity to bud from the diseased trees. 

The remedy is to plant no more trees than you can 
properly till. Do with them as with corn, and for the 
same reason, and you need not fear the Yellows. If you 
have good land, and the means of keeping it good, you 
can plant to the extent of such means. But stop at the 
limit of your means of fertilization. No good farmer will 
plant fifty acres of corn, when he has only the hands to 
till, or the means to fertilize, twenty-five; no more will 
the orchardist, peaches. The secret of success is to do 
no more of anything than you can do well. 

Planters, who have orchards already afflicted, we coun- 
sel to eradicate the trees at once, and plant no more near 
them. If a new orchard is to be planted, get healthy trees, 
and plant them on the other side of the farm — by no 
means near the old orchard. 

SYMPTOMS. 

The symptoms of the Y'elloif^s are principally two : 
1. Premature Ripening is first in order of time. On 
their first appearance, a few peaches, and, it may be, very 
few, will ripen a few days before the proper time. Gen- 
erally, their color will be bright, and their appearance 
beautiful, without any symptom of disease that would 
strike the uninitiated ; but the experienced planter is not 
deceived. He notes the fatal sign as quickly as the skil- 
ful physician does the hectic blush on the pale cheek 
of the fair consumptive, and as soon divines its cause. 



136 



PEACH CULTURE. 



The more violent the attJick, the more early and numer- 
ous will be the prematures. If it is slight, only a few 
will be affected, and they will ripen but a few days 
before the proper time; but if the disease is violent, 
tlie whole crop may be injured, and the ripening take 
place weeks in advance of the season. In the former 
case, the tree may survive several years, sinking into 
a gradual decay, the fruit growing smaller, and ripen- 
ing earlier every successive season; while in the latter, 
the decline will be rapid, ending in death the first or 
second crop after the attack. 

2. Abnormal Shoots.— The second and infallible symp- 
tom of Yellows is the striking out of unnatural shoots 
from the main branches, and sometimes from the stem of 
the tree. They are very slender, and often quite long. 
Usually, they issue from the upper side of the branch, 
and are often quite numerous. They have a sickly look, 
yet they are tough and elastic. The leaves are very 
small, slender, and pale. Premature ripening may be 
caused by accidental injury, or the borer; but these long, 
slender, sickly looking twigs are infallible symptoms of 
Yellows, and, from the moment of their appearance, the 
fate of the tree is sealed. 

REMEDIES. 

1. Plant xo diseased seed or trees. — We have al- 
ready cautioned planters against planting seed that is not 
perfectly healthy. This advice cannot be too emphati- 
cally expressed. Neither should they plant trees unless 
they know that they have been propagated from good 
seed ; and also that the huds have been taken from thrifty, 
healthy trees. This i^ preventive^ and is better than cure. 

2. Do not plant in foul ground. — We do not mean 
by this, rough ground. Peaches may, and will do well in 
any soil, no matter how rough it may be, provided it con- 



# 



INSECTS AND DISEASES. 137 

tains the essential elements of tree food. But ground is 
foul — in the sense in whicli we use the term — when it is 
poisoned by unhealthy matter, such as injurious or de- 
structive mineral or vegetable substances, or undue pro- 
portions of ingredients, innocent enough when properly 
combined. Hence, exhausted lands should not be planted 
until they have been restored by proper tillage or fertiliza- 
tion. And especially should not old peach orchards be 
replanted until they have been cultivated for a period of 
years in other crops. Clover and lime are excellent re- 
storatives. 

Under the head of foul land may be included wet, 
springy, or miry land, which is altogether unsuited to the 
peach, but very conducive to disease. 

3. Pull up the diseased trees. — When the Yellows 
has once been allowed to make much headway, the best 
remedy yet discovered is to pull up the trees by the roots, 
and haul them out of the orchard. And this should be 
done before flowering, as it is supposed by some the disease 
is spread by the carrying of the pollen from one tree to 
another while in blossom. 

4. Lime and Manure. — If the symptoms are mild in 
character, and limited in extent, and the planter cannot 
consent to lose his trees entirely, let him lime and manure 
them vigorously. Stir the ground thoroughly around the 
trees, and plow the entire orchard, and keep it in a mellow 
state. Then, if the trees are full grown, apply from half 
a bushel to a bushel of lime to a tree. This should be 
sown uniformly over the surface as far as the roots extend, 
and not piled around the neck of the tree. If the land 
has already been well limed, enrich it with muck, manure 
or ground bones, always striving to add some neio ingre- 
dient to the soil. The ground should be rich and mellow. 
Additional vigor may also be given the tree by scraping 
the stem and lower branches with a blunt-edged instru- 



138 PEACH CULTURE. 

ment, like a currying-knife, used by tanners in dressing 
their leather. This will remove all old, rough bark, and 
tend to loosen the principal coat, which is often of great 
advantage. A still further benefit will accrue by washino- 
the stem and main branches with a strong solution of 
whale-oil soap, or soap-suds, which are not only good fer- 
tilizers, but cleanse the tree, and drive away insects. An 
ordinary whitewash will also be beneficial. Follow this 
up with a little judicious pruning, and you have done all 
that seems at present practicable towards preservino;, if 
not curing, your aftected trees. In pruning, all weak and 
unhealthy, as well as all dead limbs, should be removed. 
Those left may also be shortened in the operation if you 
are not quite sure the supply of nourishment from the 
roots will be quite abundant to vigorously sustain the top. 
The object of all this treatment is to obtain and maintain a 
constant and healthy circulation of sap throughout the tree, 
and tlius give such strength and tone to its vital powers 
as shall be able to resist and repel disease. 



CHAPTER XXVII. 

SPECIAL CULTURE. 

ESPALIER. 

In the peach growing districts proper, nothing but field 
or gar<len culture is thought of, and no further directions 
are necessary ; but for those who are not so highly f ivoied, 
some specific instructions in sheltered or in-door cultivation 
may be useful. And we may remark here that several 
methods have been tried, and have found more or less 
favor with gardeners. Most of the experiments in in-door 



SPECIAL CULTURE. 139 

culture have been made in England, where, as we have 
before remarked, the peach is cultivated as an exotic. But 
in regard to all in-door or protected cultivation, it is well 
to remember, that skill is necessary in order to render it 
satisfactory or successful ; and, while we would not dis- 
courage amateurs, or say that an intelligent man may not 
learn the art from books, some practical knowledge, ob- 
tained by observation or experience, will be found highly 
beneficial. With this caution, we will proceed to give 
such plain directions as we hope will prove useful. 

We will suppose that the tree is to be trained on a 
trellis, near a wall. Then obtain at the nursery a thrifty, 
vigorous tree, of one year's growth from the bud. Cut 
away, close and smooth, all the limbs one foot upwards 
from the root ; leave two full, healthy buds, or eyes, on 
each side, and as nearly opposite each other 
as practicable ; disbud those shooting at right 
angles with these, and then cut off the top of 
the stem about one inch above the uppermost 
buds. You now have the stock for the com- 
ing tree, which is to be trained according to *' "^ ' 
the fan-shaped^ or horizontal^ method, as the convenience, 
taste, or fancy of the proprietor may dictate, and it will 
present the appearance of figure 20. 

This stock is now planted in the border, at the proper 
distance from the wall. If it is to be in the open air, on 
the south side of a wall, this will be about fifteen or 
eighteen inches ; if under glass, about a foot inside the 
south side of the peach house. The ground should be 
well pulverized, and moderately rich. Plant at the same 
depth as the stock grew in the nursery. Incline the stock 
very slightly towards the wall, whether in or out doors. 
The two pair of buds will soon send out shoots, strong 
and vigorous, as the nourishment from the roots will be 
abundant, or rather superabundant, for the preponderance 
of the stock is now greatly in the roots, and nature will 




140 PEACH CULTURE. 

be constantly striving to restore the equilibrium so re- 
cently destroyed by cutting off the top. On the preserva- 
tion of these shoots from injury, and their proper traininf^ 
much depends the beauty and fruitfulness of the future 
tree. As soon as they become a foot long, they should be 
inclined towards tiie trellis, and it may be proj^er to tie 
them to small stakes set for that purpose. When they 
reach eighteen inches or two feet, they may be tied to the 
trellis ; and care must be taken, subsequently, to tie them 
up as their length increases, to prevent their beincr broken 
off, or taking a crooked shape. These shoots, or branches, 
must not be allowed to grow either horizontally or verti- 
cally, but at a proper angle between the two. If drawn 
out horizontally, they will continually send out lateral 
shoots from the upper side, in a vertical direction, which 
will have to be rubbed off, or defeat the end entirely. If 
rubbed off, new ones will be continually taking their 
places, and the cultivator will find himself engaged in a 
constant warfire against nature. If not rubbed off, they 
will soon cover the entire surface, and as effectually frus- 
trate his design. The first aim is to form a handsome 
tree, capable of producing the largest practicable amount 
of good fruit on a given surface. In direct furtherance 
of this, these four primary branches are to be trained. 
And the second aim is to so direct, balance, and train 
them, that each shall contribute its full share towards 
forming the comi)lete tree. This should never be lost 
sight of. The natural direction of the main stem is verti- 
cal, and the natural flow^ of the sap upw^ard. Hence it is 
that top buds are best supplied with sap, and uppermost 
branches draw most strength from the roots. But in this 
artificial training, this natural tendency must be checked 
and controlled ; and the first care of the skillful gardener 
is to so dispose these branches that uniformity of size and 
strength may be attained. In order to do so, it is plain 
the lower branches ought to have a more vertical inclina- 



SPECIAL CULTURE. 



141 




Fiic. 2L- 



-GROWTH DURING 
SUMMER. 



tion than the upper ones ; for if each have the same in- 
clination, the flow of the sap to the upper ones will be 
much greater than to the lower ones, hence they will grow 
rapidly, but at the expense of the others. Now, by bend- 
ing the upper ones down to an angle of about thirty or 
thirty-five deo-rees, while we allow the lower ones to stand 

at forty-five or fifty, the de- 
sired result is attained. The 
training of the branches 
should commence as soon as 
they are eighteen or twenty 
inches long. A young tree, 
properly started, will present 
the form given in fig. 21, about 
the first of July after planting. The upper and lower 
brandies cross each other, and this is likely to be the case 
while training, but it is not to be the permanent position. 
When the tree becomes complete, and has acquired a fixed 
habit, the branches will resume their natural and relative 
position, as in figure 22. 

And if, while in training, difference in growth should 
require it, the inclination will 
have to l)e changed by rais- 
ing or lowering the branches, 
so as to maintain nn equal 
flow of sap to each, and a con- 
sequent uniformity of size. 
All buds showing themselves 
on the main stem are to be 
rubbed off as soon as they ap- 
pear ; and should any of the 
shoots become forked or deformed, they should be imme- 
diately pruned so as to correct the fault. In case of a 
fork, this may be done by cutting off the less of the two 
prongs ; in case of a crook, bruise, or knot, the best way 
is to cut off the faulty part just above a thrifty twig, or 




Fiij;-. 22. — END OF FIRST YEAR. 



142 PEACH CULTURE. 

bud, and train the latter for the main shoot. In the latter 
case, care must be taken to pinch in the twigs below, and 
on the opposite side, in order to throw more strength in 
to the leader. 

At the end of the season, if all things have been con- 
ducive, the shoots Avill have made a uniform growth of 
well matured wood, of from four to six feet respectively. 
The next spring this should be cut in about one-half, as 
shown by the cross-lines in figure 22. It may be done in 
the fall, and often is, but we do not advise it. 

The next spring, the second season's training begins by 
leaving one only of the numerous buds which shoot out 
near the top of the main stem, and rubbing off all the 
others. This bud will grow rapidly, and soon develop a 
stout, thrifty shoot. This is to he trained vertically. If 
its growth be very rapi<l, it may be checked, as occasion 
requires, by inclining it towards the horizon ; or it may 
be shortened-in by pinching off the leading bud. In the 
former case, care must be taken that it does not acquire 
too much rigidity in its temporary position, as it is ulti- 
mately designed for the main stem, and should be both 
healthy and handsome ; and in the latter, that the pinch- 
ing in should not be too frequent or severe, lest the latent 
buds of the next year be forced into premature develop- 
ment. In the meantime, the branches already formed 
must not be neglected. They will send forth numerous 
lateral, as well as point, buds. Many of the former 
should be rubbed off, in order that the strength of the 
sap may be led into those that are needed, and all but one 
of the latter. This one is to be preserved and trained for 
an extension of the lateral branches of last year, respect- 
ively, and is to be managed precisely as the vertical one, 
above described, is for the extension of the main stem. 
And all the gardener has to do during the second season 
is to watch the development of these branches, and ter- 
minal buds, gradually advancing into shoots, and preserve, 



SPECIAL CULTURE. 



143 



as before, the proper equilibrium of sap flow, and uni- 
formity of size, by j^inching in the buds, or raising or 
lowering the branches, as occasion may lequire. At the 
end of tlie second year, the tree will present the appear- 
ance of figure 23. 

' The stem will be quite stout, and the wood of the 
branches will be solid and mature ; and some, perhaps 
many, fruit-buds will show themselves. These should be 
rubbed off, except a few on the thriftiest twigs, which 
may be left to fruit. But as the tree is now entering upon 
a new stage of existence, care must be exercised that it 
does not overbear ; for if it 
does, it will probably be 
greatly stunted in its growth, 
and its capacity to produce 
regular crops of fine, rich 
fruit, greatly impaired, if not 
wholly destroyed. The quan- 
tity a tree, three years old, 
may safely bear, will, in some 
manner, depend upon its 
size nnd vigor. A very strong, healthy tree, of large 
growth, may bear, perhaps, fifty peaches, without injury, 
while a dozen would be quite enough on one of a small 
size, or more delicate variety. In any case, the thinning 
out should be done in the hud^ as the development of 
blossoms and growth of fruit are very exhaustive. 

With the first flow of sap, the third spring, the tree is 
to be again pruned; and this is done by cutting down 
the last season's growth of the main stem to two buds on 
each side, as at the first ; and the last year's growth of 
the lateral branches is to be cut in one-half, as indicated 
in the cross-lines in fiojure 23. 

Tiie tree has now had three years' growth, and still an- 
other is necessary to complete it ; but the process is sim- 
ply a repetition of that already described — a continuation 




Fig. 2o. — END OF SECOND YEAR. 



144 



PEACH CULTURE. 



and extension of what has already been done. It is proper 
to add that the lateral branches must be gradually in- 
clined downward until they reach the position they are 
intended to occupy, which may be fan-shaped or hori- 
zontal^ — at the option of tlie proprietor. For ourselves, 
we prefer the fan-shaped, as being nearer the natural posi- 
tion, and, therefore, best, (fig. 24). 

In this elaborate culture, it will be observed tliat the 
extension of the main stem, as well as the branches, is by 




Fiff. 24, — TKAINING COMPLETE. 



regular annual stages. It is tedious, and somewhat la- 
borious, and the inexperienced may ask — Why not let the 
tree take its natural course, and attain its size as soon as 
may be ? The reason has been already intimated. It is, 
that the flow of sap, being constantly upward, would give 
a preponderating size, strength and fruitfulness to a few 
main branches, while all the others would be correspond- 
ingly reduced, weakened and sterilized ; while the object 
of the training is to make every part fruitful. And these 
stages in the growth greatly tend to this, as a moment's 



SPECIAL CULTURE. 145 

consideration will sliow ; for it will be observed that the 
first year's growth, both of main stem and branches, is 
larger than the second, the second than the third, and the 
third than the fourth. In this way, the parts of the tree 
which naturally retain less sap are enabled to retain an 
equal, or neai-ly equal, quantity, and are thus provided 
with the vital force necessary to produce a corresponding 
crop of fruit. 

In our directions, so far, we have said little or nothing 
of the twigs, or laterals, on the main branches ; but near- 
ly as much will depend on the treatment of these as of 
the stem and principal branches tliemselves. But, when 
understood, the labor is easy and light. All superfluous 
buds must be rubbed off as they appear, and the strength 
be preserved for the fruit-bearing wood. The main stem, 
particularly, must not be allowed to nourish even a single 
sucker, the branches only enough twigs to bear a full 
crop. All others must be rubbed off or cut in. In prun- 
ing these twigs in the summer, and especially when the 
season is somewhat advanced, care must be taken to leave 
enough wood and leaves to use the sap, and prevent its 
starting the fruit-buds of the next season, whereby the 
crop would be greatly injured or totally destroyed. And 
here, again, the operator will need to be wary as well as 
diligent. 

The pruning of the twigs, which are the fruit-bearing 
wood, is almost identical with that of the vine when 
trained on the spur system. They are first thinned to the 
requisite number, the most healthy and vigorous ones be- 
ing left ; they are then shortened-in to a proper length ; 
and this will depend much upon the distance between the 
main branches themselves. The twigs of proximate 
branches may touch each other, but must not overlap. A 
full grown tree, properly pruned, will present early in the 
spring, just before the buds shoot, an appearance some- 
what like that seen in fig. 24. 



146 



PEACH CULTURE. 



From this figure it is readily seen that all the space is 
covered with bearing wood, and is renewed from year to 
year by cutting out old twigs, and supplying their places 
with new ones. To the inexperienced and timid, this is 
quite a task, but a little practice will soon make it an in- 
teresting and agreeable labor. 

The method we have just described is equally well suit- 
ed to trellis, wall or peach-house culture. In the last case 
the branches are fastened to the rafters of the glass roof, 
or an inside trellis-work attached to them, and should be 
from eight inches to a foot below the glass. 



m\ 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 

THE PEACH-HOUSE. 

The peach-house is to the peach what the grapery is to 
the vine. The object is to protect the tree from external 
cold, or stimulate it by artificial heat, or both. The style 
of the building varies according to the taste of the pro- 
prietor. The simplest are generally the best. For persons 
who are familiar with graperies and green-houses, no de- 
scription or instruction will be necessary ; but for those 
who have no knowledge of the matter, the following 
hints may be useful. 

If it be intended to use artificial heat, in order not only 
to protect the fruit from killing frosts, but also to stimu- 
late the trees, and accelerate early ripening, the builder 
must determine on a plan for the whole, and which must 
harmonize throughout. He will first consider how many 
trees for which he has to provide space, then, whether or 
not that space can be properly heated with one furnace ; 



THE PEACH-HOUSE. 



147 



if not, whether he will incur the expense of two ; and 
again, whether he will have two rows or one in his peach- 
house. An ordinary furnace will, with ordinary care, suf- 
ficiently heat five thousand five hundred cuhic feet of 
air. Now, if a single furnace is to command the entire 
peach-house, it must not include more than that space. 
This may take any convenient form. The most common 
is a longitudinal one. A very convenient j)each-house will 




Fig. 35. — PEACH-HOUSE. 

be 50 feet long, 12 feet wide, and 4 feet high on the south 
side, and 14 on the north, as in fig. 25. 

The north wall may be of almost any material — brick, 
stone, or wood. The south side of a stable, barn, or 
w^arehouse, may sometimes be appropriated for the back 
of the peach-house. The south wall is also solid, and may 
be made of any material suitable for any other kind of 
building. The ends are usually solid also, but not neces- 
sarily so ; and in shady places, it is advisable that the 
west end be of glass, like the roof Remember the di- 
mensions : North wall, 14 feet high, and 50 feet long ; 
south wall, 4 feet high, and 50 feet long ; each end 12 
feet long, 4 feet high at south end, sloping upwards and 
7 



148 PEACH CULTURE. 

backwards until it reaches a height of 14 feet. The roof 
is supported by rafters running from the low wall on the 
south to the high one on the north ; and these rafters 
should be spaced to correspond with the width of the 
glass used in constructing the roof. A foot or fifteen 
inches apart will do very well. These rafters are grooved 
on the upper side, to admit the glass in the same manner 
as the frames for covering approved hot-beds. The glass 
reaches from one rafter to another, lies in these grooves, 
and is secured by putty in the usual manner. In putting 
in the glass, the glazier, commencing at the bottom, or 
low wall, lays one pane, and then another, allowing the 
lower edge of the second one to overlap the upper edge 
of the first about half an inch, and so throughout, so as 
to make a perfect water shed. 

When cold air is to be introduced from the iloor or 
ends, the roof may be of one entire piece ; but if from 
the roof, this is provided for in its construction ; and the 
best and most convenient method is to have the rafters 
mortised into a beam, at a suitable distance from the 
south wall — say four feet — and glaze in the manner de- 
scribed above, upward from this. The lower section will 
consist of squares, fastened with hinges in their upper 
edges on the beam, and lying flat on the south wall. 
These can be raised or closed, as occasion may require. 

If the house is to be ventilated at the ends, it can be 
done by either wooden or glass doors ; but, in any case, 
care must be taken that they close tight, as otherwise a 
sudden severe frost may surprise the gardener, and greatly 
disappoint and mortify the owner. 

The furnace is properly placed, just outside the end 
wall, and it is not material Avhich wall. Convenience will 
usually decide this. The flue may be either close to the 
north wall, or six feet south of it, as one or two rows of 
trees are to be planted. It may be under the surface or 
above it — an arched trench, or stove-pipe, or a combina- 



i 



THE PEACH-HOUSE. 149 

tion of both, and the last is best ; because, if an arched 
trench is used without the pipe, there is danger that cracks 
may occur, and thus let in a stream of smoke and heat 
upon the trees or fruit ; while, if the pipe only is em- 
ployed, there is danger of overheating. A pipe, enclosed 
in a trench, provides against both dangers. The trench 
and pipe should extend the entire length of the building, 
and a vertical flue, or cldmney, should occupy precisely 
the same relative position on the outside of the second 
wall, that the furnace does on the first. 

There is, as a rule, very little inconvenience felt from 
the difference in the heat at the extreme ends of the flue ; 
but should it be necessary, it can be equalized, in a great 
measure, in one or other of the two following simple 
Avays : make the casing of the pipe thinner as it recedes 
from the furnace, or increase the volume of the pipe. By 
the former method, the heat will be sooner radiated, and 
by the latter, more radiating surface will be provided, as 
the distance from the furnace increases. The heat thrown 
out can also be modified by the depth of the trench as 
well as the thickness of the casing. A mild, uniform heat 
should be aimed at. 

When only one row of trees is to be planted, the flue 
should pass about one foot inside the north wall, the aim 
beino: to have it as far removed from the trees and fruit 
as practicable. But if two rows, then six feet from the 
north wall will be as nearly the proper place as may be, 
the hight of the roof at the north, equalizing the greater 
horizontal distance from the south. Sometimes the flue 
is in the center of the house, but the objection to this is 
that the temperature is never equable. A less serious one 
is that it obstructs the light. 

The whole floor of the peach -house, but especially the 
borders, in which the trees are to be planted, should be 
of good, friable, productive soil. Not only so, but also 
the soil outside both the north and south walls, where 



150 PEACH CULTURE. 

two rows are planted, for a distance of six feet, at least; 
for, altbougli the trees are planted inside the walls, they 
are to draw much of their aliment from the outside. The 
number of trees in a house, such as we have described, 
with double rows, will be either twelve or sixteen — six or 
eight to a row. The lateral branches of a good, thrifty 
tree may extend four feet on either side ; and if so, there 
will be space for only six trees to tlie row. But some 
gardeners will prefer that the arms be only three feet long. 
In the latter case, there will be eight trees. It matters 
very little which number he adopted. Either will do very 
well, and, by proper training, about the same quantity 
and quality of fruit may be produced. 

The trees on the south, or low wall, are trained under 
the glass roof, at a distance of eight or ten inches from it, 
and are fistened to the rafters by small wires, or to an 
inside trellis fastened to the rafters. The branches, as 
well as the main stem, may be carried to the middle of 
the roof, but not beyond it, as the light above that will 
be wanted for the other row. 

The north, or rear row, is trained against the rear wall, 
which should always be plastered or whitewashed, and 
may be carried to its entire height — fourteen feet. In 
botii cases the training and culture are the same, except 
that in the south row, the sloping roof compels the trees 
to incline towards the north, while the trees in the north 
row take the erect position. It will be readily seen that 
tiie peach-honse admits both the fan-shapied and horizontal 
system of training. 

We have already given what we regard as the proper 
size for a peach-house, but it may be of almost any shape 
or size ; still, it will be well to remember, that small ones 
are better forcers, and, if early maturity be an object, are 
to be preferred — while large ones give more space, and 
larger crops. If only one row of trees is to be planted, 
thev need not be more than ten or twelve feet wide. 



THE PEACH-HOUSE. 151 

They may be very plain or very ornate, as the taste 
and means of the proprietor will allow. As they are es- 
sentially a luxury, good taste will dictate that they be at 
least neat and pleasant to the eye. When means are at 
command, they may be made very ornamental and at- 
tractive. 

The management of a peach-house, or vinery, is one of 
the most delicate and important branches of horticulture, 
and requires constant attention and care. The three es- 
sentials are — pure air, proper temperature, and cleanliness. 
These are about as necessary to the life of a tree as to 
that of a man. The first is at hand in inexhaustible 
quantity, and all the gardener has to do is to open the 
windows and let it in. But he must take care when he 
does it, and how he does it, for his charge is almost as 
tender as the little ones of the nursery, and almost as 
easily injured by ignorance or carelessness. 

When the forcing commences, and it may commence as 
early as January, the temperature may range from fifty 
to fifty-five degrees, Fahrenheit, in the evenings and 
mornings. At night it may fall a little below even fifty 
without detriment. As soon as the buds have burst it 
may be raised to seventy, and when the flowers appear, 
four or five degrees higher. From the time the flowers 
appear until the fruit is set, the air must be kept mildly 
moist, and this can be done by frequent sprinklings with 
a syringe, which may also serve to cleanse the leaves and 
branches. Even after the fruit is set, and somewhat 
advanced in growth, these sprinklings will be necessary. 
When the season advances, and the lieat reaches seventy- 
five degrees outside, no artificial heat wall be needed, ex- 
cept in cold evenings, when a little must be introduced to 
prevent chilling, or in murky weather, to drive away the 
unhealthy humid atmosphere. 

Frequent washings Avith a garden syringe will do much 
to preserve the freshness and health of the trees, as well 



152 



PEA.CH CULTURE. 



as to promote and accelerate the ripening of the fruit. 
Soap-suds are excellent for this, as they not only keep 
the trees clean, but afford a safe and very appropriate 
nourishment. 

CULTIVATION IN POTS. 




Fiof. 26. 



The peach, like almost every other fruit tree, can be 
successfully grown in pots or vases. When this is desir- 
ed, procure a pot about two feet deep, and 
fifteen inches wide at the greatest diameter, 
and of the usual shape. It may be larger or 
smaller as the taste of the amateur inclines 
him. Fill this with a rich mould, mixed freely 
with ashes or bone-dust. In tliis, plant a 
thrifty young tree from the nursery, which 
you will cut down to one foot, and the lower 
branches to the height of six inches, cut off close to the 
stem, and the remaining buds shortened-in to two buds 
each, as in fig. 26. This should be done in autumn, and the 
pot kept in the cellar during winter. 
The next spring it should be set out 
early. It will grow very fast and 
vigorously, and become quite stout 
and stocky. In the fall, say about 
the first of September, north of the 
fortieth parallel, and south of that, 
the first of October, the season's 
growth sliould again be shortened- 
in to three buds, as shown by the 
cross-lines in figure 27, and thus ^is- 27.— pot culture. 
prepared for a crop the next year. If the tree has been 
well attended, and met with nothing to injure or retard 
it, well developed fruit-buds will be formed, and the next 
season you will have a crop of beautiful fruit. And if you 
put it in a conservatory, or cold grapery, you can have 



i 




VARIETIES. 153 

ripe fruit by the middle of June, or even earlier. The 
ripening of the fruit may also be hastened by simply 
exposing your tree in some warm position early in the 
spring, carefully removing it to a shelter from cold and 
frosts at night and on cold days, or, which is still better 
in an ordinary garden hot-bed. 

In pots, is the appropriate method of cultivating Van 
Buren's Golden Dwarf; but as it is a dwarf naturally^ 
cutting-in will seldom be necessary. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 
VARIETIES. 

The varieties of the Peach, as of many other fruits, are 
very numerous, and may be almost indefinitely increased 
by propagation. More than a hundred and fifty have been 
already catalogued, and this does not include the naturals, 
which are as numerous and various as the budded ones. 
But, of all these, only a few, comparatively, are valuable, 
and worthy of cultivation. Were five-sixths of the whole 
condemned and rejected, it would be as greatly to private 
profit as to public advantage. But this desirable result, 
at present, seems unattainable. The obstacles are two. 
Young and inexperienced planters generally desire a large 
variety. They want some of almost every kind, not re- 
flecting that it costs just as much to rear a poor tree as a 
good one, while the latter will often pay them two or 
three times as much as the former. But they have to 
learn wisdom by experience, and are somewhat excusable. 
As they grow older, they grow wiser. 

The other obstacle is in the nurserymen, and the one 
contributes to the other. The nurserymen know well the 



154 PEACH CULTURE. 

desire there is among novices to multiply varieties, and it 
is their interest to gratify, if not to stimulate and culti- 
vate it ; hence they make it a point to keep all the varie- 
ties they think will be called for ; as well to supply every 
demand, as to be reckoned growers of large and varied 
stock. Owing to these two causes, reciprocally acting on 
and aiding each other, myriads of worthless trees are 
planted every year. 

There is an auxiliary cause, tending incidentally to the 
same result, which ought not to be removed, but only re- 
stricted to proper litnits. This is the discovery or origi- 
nating of new varieties. A nurseryman discovers, or | 
thinks he has discovered, a new variety of value. His * 
interest often increases his estimate of its worth. He im- 
mediately sets about propagating it. Every bud in his 
ingenious hands becomes a tree, and every tree, a year 
after, a hundred, and so on, until he has tens of thousands 
for sale. These must be disposed of at prices yielding a 
large profit. They are extensively advertised, and as ex- 
tensively disseminated. They go into all quarters, and 
are largely planted. And this increase is generally to be 
multiplied by the number of nurserymen engaged in the 
business. And, as we have already intimated, if confined 
to proper limits, it is both legitimate and commendable, 
because every real improvement is a substantial acquisi- 
tion and valuable addition to the public weal, and should 
be encouraged and fostered. But the misfortune is, that 
these new varieties which have cost so much, often turn 
out to be poor bearers, of inferior quality, or perhaps en- 
tirely worthless. In some cases, the fault is wholly with 
the originator who introduced and disseminated them. 
He may have done so solely for lucre, and totally regard- 
less of character and honesty ; but this is not generally 
the case. In most instances, he honestly believes in the 
value of his production ; but in this he is mistaken. He 
has not suflSciently tested it. He has not considered the 



VARIETIES. 155 

now well established fact that climate, soil and position 
greatly affect the vahie of particular varieties. That 
what may be exceeduigly valuable in one latitude, may be 
almost worthless in another ; that what may be first-class 
in a light, sandy soil, may be third-rate in a clayey one ; 
that what may be a hardy, productive tree in a sheltered 
yard, may be tender or barren when exposed in an open 
orchard. To all tliese tests the new candidate for public 
favor should be subjected. If it pass them all satisfac- 
torily, it may, and ought to, be received, and placed upon 
the list of approved varieties, hut not before^ for great 
injury and loss have resulted from the extensive planting 
of highly praised, but poorly tested, varieties; and it is 
time planters should give this matter their attention. 
There has been too much laxity in the past ; let there be 
more care in the future. 

We liave alluded, incidentally, to the difference of lati- 
tude in determining the value of a variety. We now fur- 
ther remark that it often determines the incidental local 
value of the same variety. Take, for instance, the Amsden's 
June, which is the earliest variety of which we have any 
knowledge — certainly the earliest one in general cultiva- 
tion. Between the extreme limits, north and south, of 
the peach bearing district in our own country, there is at 
least tico months^ difference in the time of its ripening. 
• In Florida, the middle of June; in New York, the 
middle of August. Now, for the South, you want the 
earliest variety that can be had, in order to be first in 
market ; but it does not necessarily follow that you want 
the same variety for the North, and for this reason : Very 
early and very late varieties, as a rule, are not the best, 
but, because of the season of their ripening, they com- 
mand high prices, and are, therefore, profitable. Take 
the New York market for an illustration. This market 
opens about the twenty-fifth of July with Hale's Early ^ 
but the peaches have been grown on the Delaware Penin- 



156 PEACH CULTURE. 

sula, two hundred miles south of that city, and cannot be 
matured in the vicinity for a month later. But by that 
time it is the height of the peach season, and Old Mixon^ 
Moore's Favorite^ Craiqford^s Early and Late^ Reeve's 
Favorite^ Red Rareripe and Stump the World, the very 
finest varieties in quality as well as appearance, are on 
the market, and arriving by scores of thousands daily. 
Now, it is quite plain that Salens Early, even from its 
favorite localities, could not successfully compete wdth 
these choice kinds ; and how much less when grow^n fur- 
ther north, on less conducive soil, and, consequently, of 
smaller size, and poorer flavor ? The judicious planter, 
then, of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Southern New 
York, if he plant at all for market, will not plant Hale's 
Early, bnt, on the contrary, some one or more of the later 
sorts ; and thus, after the zenith of the season, and after 
these favorites have almost disappeared from the stands, 
he will be able to step in, and prolong their season three 
or four weeks, at very handsome profits. The intelligent 
planter, on making his selections, will always do so with 
reference to soil, climate and location, and even plant dif- 
ferent varieties on the same farm, simply because one 
field is a light loam, and the other a stiff clay. 

After attention to the primary question of soil and cli- 
mate, the next thing to be considered is the market to be 
supplied, or the use which is to be made of the fruit. 
Prejudice or habit often exalts one variety at the expense 
of another. This mav have arisen in whim or accident, 
and may be continued by ignorance or selfishness. It 
may be all wrong, but few have the courage or patience 
to undertake its cure. Hence, if people will give more 
money for a worse article, they will generally be allowed 
to do so. Planters will not jyerslst to cure them of their 
folly, and pay the doctor's bill at the same time, but rather 
acquiesce in their tastes, and minister to them. Hence, 
we send one variety of Pear to Boston, another to New 



VARIETIES. 157 

York, and keep a third and better one at home. So in 
peaches. A few years ago, it was thought there was no 
peach fit to preserve but the Heath Gling^ and none fit to 
can but the white-fleshed ,' but now it is admitted that 
several others may be preserved ; and, for canning, yellow 
peaches have superseded white ones almost entirely. But 
whatever is most in demand, brings the best price ; and, 
as the planter plants for profit, that is his ultimate aim, 
and must not be overlooked. 

If there is demand for canning at home, he will do well 
to ascertain what a arieties bring the highest prices at the 
canning establishments, and whether the demand is suffi- 
cient to influence or control his planting. If not, or only 
to a limited extent, he will then consider the requirements 
of the markets to which his fruit is to be sent, and pro- 
vide for these. 

Our directions here can only be of a general character, 
and must always be considered with reference to what we 
have already said of climate, soil and local circumstances. 
One thing we wish to impress upon young planters espe- 
cially : It is, not to plant too many varieties. In no case 
should they exceed twenty ; in most, twelve will be 
enough; and in some, six will be better than twelve. 
What these shall be will depend upon the circumstances 
we have already referred to. 

The different varieties of the peach are distinguished 
by their leaves, blossoms and fruit, and sometimes by 
the branches and general contour of the head. On enter- 
ing an orchard, the practiced eye of the skillful nursery- 
man or planter wdll be able to distinguish familiar varie- 
ties at a glance, in the absence of both flowers and 
foliage. But he may not be able to explain satisfactorily 
why he can do so ; it is a similar power to the one that 
enables the shepherd to distinguish the sheep of his flock, 
although to a stranger they all seem alike. 

The most striking difference in the leaves of the peach 





158 PEACH CULTURE. 

is the presence or absence of glands. The glands are se- 
creting cells at the base of the leaf, and forming slight 
protuberances. Their secretions are often fragrant and 
agreeable. In some varieties the glands are small, round 
and regular, (A, A, fig. 28,) and are called, 
in botanical language, globose; in others 
they are large, irregular, and kidney- 
shaped, (A, A, fig. 29,) and are called reni- 
form. Til ere is still another character- 
istic distinction in the leaves of the white 
and yellow varieties, and broadly mark- ^i^ 28.-globosb 
ing the line between them. This is the " glands. 
color, which is nearly as obvious in the leaf as the fruit, 
and may be observed during the whole 
period of foliage. In looking over an 
orchard, the yellow peach trees can 
readily be distinguished by the yellow 
tinge of their leaves ; and the experienced 
planter can just as certainly tell the one 
from the other by the leaf as by the 
Fig. 29.— RENiFORM fruit. These distinctions will enable the 

GLANDS. , , ^ , .- . . 

planter to classify varieties, and to refer 
any variety to its proper class. 

The blossoms distinguish the peach into two classes or 
divisions also. In one, the flowers are large, red at the 
center, and pale at the margin ; in the other, the flowers 
are small, with a dark crimson margin. There are a few 
varieties whose blossoms seem to possess a combination 
of these characteristics, and are sometimes referred to a 
third division ; but their distinctive features will hardly 
justify this addition. 

To common observers, the fruit affords the most obvi- 
ous distinction. Indeed, few, except the planter and 
nurseryman, trouble themselves with anything else. The 
multitude are content to regale themselves with the rich, 
luscious, melting fruit, without giving a thought to tree. 



VARIETIES. 159 

leaf or flower ; and perhaps thousands who enjoy this ele- 
gant luxury every summer can hardly tell whether the 
peach tree is deciduous or evergreen, or even a tree at 
all ! But they all know the difference between a Free- 
stone and Cling, a yellow peach and a White one. And 
these are really, if not the most certain, the most obvious 
distinctions. Color strikes the eye at once. 

The ^Tiite Peaches are distinguished for the tender, 
delicate, and sparkling quality of their flesh ; the Yellow 
for their bright color, rich juice, and great size. In the 
former, sweetness predominates ; in the latter, strength. To 
most persons, especially those of experience and practiced 
taste, the former are most palatable ; yet some, even of 
this class, prefer the latter. But to the multitude at large, 
the bright color and large size of the yellow peaches are 
irresistable ; and, as a rule, they sell better in market 
than the white. 

The fruit is again divided into Freestone and Cling, and 
feach of these divisions includes both white and yellow 
peaches. The names clearly indicate their distinctive 
character. The former parts from the ^tone freely , while 
the latter clings to it tenaciously. The clings, especially 
of some varieties, are very juicy and vinous, and of ex- 
quisite flavor. But they are not popular as a market 
fruit, owing to their adhesion to the stones, which 
renders them inconvenient to eat. 

The class, and sometimes variety, may be told by the 
branches and general contour of the head. In some, the 
branches strike out horizontally ; in others, almost verti- 
cally ; and in others still, at an intermediate angle. The 
first gives the round head, like the apple tree ; the second, 
the tapering head, somewhat resembling the cherry tree ; 
and the last, the spreading or fan-shaped head. An ob- 
servant planter will soon notice these peculiarities, and 
thus be able to tell his trees even in the winter, when 
stripped of foliage. 



^1 



160 



PEACH CULTURE. 



We have already cautioned the young planter against ^lll 
the common error of planting too many varieties. We " 
shall now proceed to advise him what varieties he should 
select. And here we wish still further to remark, that 
some varieties do very well in certain localities, and very 
ill in others. For instance, Amsden's June, a compara- 
tively recent and generally popular variety, is a great 
favorite with some peach growers, while by others it is 
viewed with distrust. Both of these may be right, as 
some localities may suit it, while others do not. 

But experience has proved that some varieties do well 
almost in any place, whatever may be the soil or climate; 
that wherever the Peach will succeed at all, they will ; 
and these may justly be regarded as the most reliable and 
valuable of all for general cultivation. Preeminent among 
these are the Crawfords and Old Mixo)i. They are the 
very highest type of the white and yelloio varieties, re- 
spectively ; and years of experience, in all parts of our 
country, place them at the very head of the list. 

From authentic sources, embracing in territory more 
than twenty States, and in variety more than fifty sorts, 
we have, at some pains, prepared the following tables, 
which show, at a glance, general results. But it must be 
remembered that the merits of any given variety are not 
determined for one reason, but for many; and that a 
peach of the finest flavor may take a low grade, while one 
of very poor flavor may rank high. What is sought, and 
•what makes the character, is a combination of many 
virtues. The largest number of these virtues gives the 
highest rank. A peach may be of excellent flavor, but a 
poor bearer ; it may be a good bearer, but subject to rot, 
or the crop may not ripen. It may be a good bearer, may 
ripen a crop of fine flavored fruit, but so small that they 
will not sell, and, in consequence, it goes down to the foot 
of the list. Vigor and productiveness of the tree, and 
size, color, and richness of the fruit, is the summit of the 



VARIETIES. 



161 



planter's ambition • and he should never cease striving 

for it. 

The following table shows the relative popularity of 
twelve varieties in the peach districts, the contest being 
for the first rank, and the figures indicating the votes by 
districts : 

Old Mixon Free, 9 

Crawford's Early, '^ 

Crawford's Late, ^ 

Old Mixon Cling, 3 

Heath Cling, • .... 3 

Smock, 3 

Troth, 3 

Ward's Late, 3 

Amsden, ^ 

Large Early York, ^ 

Stump the World, ^ 

Morris' White, 1 

The vote, in detail, stands thus : 

For Old Mixon Free : Delaware, District of Columbia, 
Central Illinois, Southern Illinois, Massachusetts, Eastern 
New York, Western New York, Eastern Pennsylvania, 
and Western Pennsylvania. 

These nine districts would place Old Mixon at the very 
head of the list, or, rather, not allow precedence to any 
other, as some of them give equal grade to several varie- 
ties. 

For Crawford's Early : Delaware, District of Colum- 
'bia. Southern Indiana, Massachusetts, Western New 
York, Eastern Pennsylvania, and Western Pennsylvania. 
For Crawford's Late : Delaware, District of Columbia, 
Southern Indiana, Western New York, Eastern Pennsyl- 
vania, and Western Pennsylvania. 

For Old Mixon Cling : District of Columbia, Northern 
Indiana, and Southern Indiana. 



162 PEACH CULTURE. 

For Heath Cling : Northern Indiana, Southern Indiana, 
and Soutliern Ohio. 

For Smock: Central Illinois, Southern Illinois, and 
Eastern Pennsylvania. 

For Troth : Central Illinois, Southern Illinois, and 
Eastern Pennsylvania. 

For Ward's Late : Southern Illinois, Eastern Pennsyl- 
vania, and Western Pennsylvania. 

For Amsdei^ : Northern Ohio, and Central Ohio. 
For Large Early York : Southern Illinois, and Eastern 
Pennsylvania. 

For Stump the World : Southern IlUnois, and \yestem 
Pennsylvania. 

For Morris' White : Southern Indiana. 

The second place is assigned to the following seventeen 
varieties, the figures opposite denoting the number of dis- 
tricts that give them this grade : 

Morris' Whhe, 17 

Early York, 16 

George the Fourth, 16 

Grosse Mignonne, 16 

Large Early York, 15 

Crawford's Late, 14 

Crawford's Early, 13 

Heath Cling, 12 

Old Mixon Cling, 12 

Yellow Rareripe, 12 

Ward's Late, 11 

Lemon Cling, 10 

Old Mixon Free, 10 

Smock, 10 

Amsden, 9 

Stump the World, 9 

Troth's Early, 9 



i 



VARIETIES. 



163 



These tables are very interesting, as indicating the 
preference given for the several varieties ; but the reports, 
upon which they are base<l, being only partial or local, 
they must not be relied on as absolute verity, but only as 
proximate truths, derived from the best sources of informa- 
tion at present accessible. It will be further observed 
that these tables do not fully indicate the aggregate 
merits of the respective varieties, inasmuch as one variety 
may have, and often has, several votes for the first grade, 
and as many more for the second. Now, neither of them 
gives the absolute quality, but the aggregate of both. 
This will appear in the following table : 



Varieties. 



Crawfortrs Early. . . 
Craw ford' s Late . . . 
Old Mixon Free.. . . 

Morris' White. 

Lar<?e Earl.y York. . 

Early York 

George the Fourth. 
Grosse Mignoiine. . 

Heath Cllncr 

Old Mixon Cling... 
Ward's Late Free.. 

Smock 

Troth 

Yellow Rareripe.. . 

Amsden.. 

Stump the World.. 
Lemon Cling , 



Votes for 


Vot£S for 




1st Rank. 


2d Hank. 


Aggregate. 


1 


13 


20 


6 


14 


20 


9 


10 


19 


1 


17 


18 


2 


15 


17 




16 


16 




16 


16 




16 


16 


3 


12 


15 


3 


12 


15 


3 


11 


14 


3 


10 


13 


3 


9 


12 




12 


12 


2 


9 


11 


2 


9 


11 




10 


10 



This table of gradations, from 20 to 10, shows at a 
glance the general estimate, as ascertained from numerous 
reports from all parts of the country, and may be safely 
relied on as a general guide. It is subject, however, to 
the observations we have already made, and also to the 
following. 

Some of the varieties above named are of very poor 
quality, but, owing to their productiveness, and time of 
ripening, are favorites in some localities. Of such is the 
Troth. Others, although of excellent quality, and rea- 
sonably productive, have not been introduced, or exten- 
sively cultivated, and in some of the districts reporting, 



164 PEACH CULTURE. 

have not been tested, therefore their merits are unknown. 
Of such, we believe, is Stump the World. 

Since the publication of the first edition in 1870, sev- 
eral new varieties have been introduced, and will be 
noticed here. A further trial has shown that Hale's 
Early is almost worthless, and, by common consent of 
growers on the Delaware Peninsula, has been discarded 
in all lists of approved or commended varieties. 

The Sahoay, although a fair peach, is not commended 
for the reason that it is inferior to the Smock, which 
ripens about the same time. 

Under the head, 

NEW PEACHES, 

we note the following varieties, which are highly com- 
mended by some. From personal observation we can 
only speak of these three varieties ; and even these we 
have only seen in bearing a single season. They are, 
Amsden- Alexander, Early Louise, and Early Rivers, all 
of which we saw in great beauty and perfection in the 
orchard of Dr. Henry Ridgely, at Dover, Delaware, in 
the summer of 1880 ; and to him are we principally in- 
debted for the following description : 

Almost all nurserymen and planters who have fruited 
them agree that the Amsden and Alexander are identical. 
They have the same taste, the same appearance, and 
ripen the same time ; and, therefore, there seems no 
reason for giving the same peach two names ; but, as we 
cannot decide which has seniority of introduction, we 
compound the two names, and call the peach the 

AMSDE]Sr-ALEXAI>rDER. 

Veiy Early ; gathered at Dover, Delaware, and shipped 
to New York June 25, 1880 ; size below medium ; form 
oblong ; highly colored ; flesh greenish-white, presenting 
a somewhat unripe appearance near the stone ; pleasant 



VARIETIES. 165 

but not rich taste. Tree a fine grower and great bearer. 
It was observed that the first picking was wormy. Ke- 
garded as a valuable acquisition. 

Early Louise. 

Very Early, closely following the Amsden- Alexander. 
Ripened, gathered, and marketed out of the same orchard 
the same season, July 6th. Fruit small, long, slender, 
and ill-shaped, with a green, unripe appearance at com- 
plete maturity. Flesh greenish- white, very sweet, ad- 
hering to the stone. Tree a good grower, and quite pro- 
ductive so far as tested. 

Early Rivers. 

The best of the Early peaches. Comes in immediately 
after and with the Louise, and a few days in advance of 
the Hale. Picked by Dr. Ridgely July 9, 1880. Medium 
to large ; round and handsome ; pure white, rarely with 
a faint blush when ripening in hot, dry weather. Stone 
small. Flesh rich, tender, sweet, of high flavor, but very 
slightly stringy. Flowers large. Tree a fine grower and 
fair bearer. The skin and flesh are so tender that it 
requires the most careful handling, and does not bear 
shipping well. 

Foster. 

Origin near Boston. Yellow freestone. Very large, 
round, and of good quality. Ripens with, or a little in 
advance of, the Early Crawford, and is regarded by some 
as superior to that peach. 

Lord Palmerston". 

Very large ; skin creamy white, with a pink cheek ; 
flesh firm, melting, juicy, and rich. Middle to end of 
August. 

Mouittai:n" Rose. 

Origin, Morris County, New Jersey. Large, roundish ; 



166 PEACH CULTURE. 

skin whitish ; nearly covered with dark red ; flesh white, 
juicy, and good. Tree vigorous and productive. August. 

Piquet's Late. 

A Georgia freestone variety of great size. Yellow, with 
red cheek; flesh yellow, melting, sweet, and highly 
flavored. Season, last of September. 

PRii^^cEss OF Wales. 

Very large and beautiful ; creamy, with a rosy cheek ; 
rich, melting, excellent. 

Snow. 

A beautiful peach of medium size ; clear, creamy 
white throughout ; very desirable for preserving. Hardy 
and productive ; blossoms white and shoots greenish. 
August and September. 

Steadlt. 

A new freestone variety of western origin, not yet suf- 
ficiently tested to speak decisively. Hardy and produc- 
tive. Fruit large, round ; greenish color ; flesh white to 
the seed, and of good flavor. October. 

Waterloo. 

A seedling originating with Mr. Henry Lisk, of Water- 
loo, N. Y. The owner describes it thus : *' Size, me- 
dium to large. Form, round, with a deep suture on one 
side, from stem to apex ; stem in a deep cavity ; apex 
slightly depressed. Color, pale whitish green in shade ; 
marbled red, deepening into dark red or crimson, in 
the sun. Flesh, greenish- white, with abundance of 
sweet, vinous juice ; adheres to the stone." Season, 
first of July, or with the Amsden- Alexander. 

Many other new varieties might be added to this list ; 
but we do not believe that any good result will be attained 
by doing so. Amateurs who wish to experiment will find 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 167 

an ample field by consulting the catalogues of the leading 
nurserymen of the country. 

In our next chapter we will speak more in detail of va- 
rieties for planting. 



CHAPTER XXX. 

DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 

"We have already cautioned the young planter against 
the common error of planting too many varieties. We 
now propose to advise him in regard to those he should 
plant. Having given due weight to what we have said 
on soil, climate, and location, he will still further have re- 
gard to the markets, time of ripening, and number of 
trees he is to plant. 

If he is near a great city, it will generally be for his inter- 
est to get into market as early as practicable, and, there- 
fore, the early sorts will suit him best. But this may not 
always hold good ; for the same motive that influences 
him will likely impel many others, and thus the competi- 
tion may be so great, as to reduce the price below profit. 
When there is danger of this, a later variety may be 
preferable. These remarks apply with equal force to all late 
kinds, and for the same reason. If the grower has to send 
to a distant market, he should have some regard to that, 
and select the kinds that will bear carriage. 

If he is going to raise fruit fi:)r canning, then the season 
is not so much an object as the quality of the fruit, and 
its special adaptation to this purpose, and this will influ- 
ence his selection. 

Again, the planter should consider whether he will 
plant for a supply during the entire season, or only a part 



168 PEACH CULTURE. 

of it. The peach season proper, on the Delaware Penin- 
sula, continues two months from the first of August. To 
supply this, it requires eight or ten varieties, at least, ri- 
pening consecutively ; and they must be carefully selected 
with this view, for, if tliey overlap or run into each other, 
that number will not be sufficient. But when there is a 
full crop, when all varieties are fruitful, the season often 
commences earlier, and runs clear through October, add- 
ing five or six weeks to its duration. Now, if the planter 
wishes to avail himself of this entire period, he will have 
to plant accordingly, commencing with the very eatliest, 
and closing with the very latest. And again, he may bo 
afraid to rely on a single variety in each progressive step 
of the course ; and, if so, he will plant double — that is, he 
Avill plant two varieties, ripening as nearly together as 
practicable, and thus guard against the failure of either to 
produce a crop, or to command an adequate price. This, 
of course, will largely increase his list. 

But the reflective planter may think that a few well 
chosen sorts will pay him better than many — some of 
which are not first-rate — and confine his selection to these. 
This will do very well if nobody leads or follows him. 
But suppose all come to the same conclusion, and act ac- 
cordingly ? It is easily seen tJie peach season would soon 
be reduced to a few days only, and then there would be 
such a glut, that transportation could not be found, even 
if pickers and buyers could. The folly of running away 
after a few special favorites has been seen in several in- 
stances. A few years ago, the rage was for very early 
fruit, because very early fruit had sold exceedingly high. 
Nurserymen were beset by anxious (mquirers after early 
trees. The old, favorite kinds, they could only sell in 
small quantities, if at all, and at reduced prices. To meet 
this urgent demand, they sought out and propagated the 
earliest varieties almost exclusively. The market was 
soon supplied with trees ; they were planted by hundreds 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 169 

of thousands, and the anxious planters could hardly wait 

their coming-in, so eager were they to realize the large 

fortunes their fancies had promised them. The time soon 

flew by. The trees, whose growth had been watclied 

with almost maternal care, bore, and abundantly, large 

crops of beautiful and delicious fruit. Now their golden 

dreams of great and sudden fortune were to be realized. 

But, alas, 

" Disappointment lurlvs in many a prize, 
As bees in flowers, and stings us with success." 

It was soon found there was " too much of a good 
thing." The market was fully supplied, or overstocked 
with early peaches, and the inexorable laws of trade soon 
reduced the price to mere remuneration, or, at best, to a 
small profit. The consequence was, that early peaches 
were pronounced a cheat by many who had been most 
enthusiastic in their favor. Again, it was found that very 
late peaches brought high prices one or two seasons, and 
immediately a rush was made on them, but not so general 
or so intense as the former. Some had been enlightened, 
and learned to be prudent. Still later, during the season 
of 1869, it was discovered that some varieties, ripening 
just in the midst of it, brought the best prices, and forth- 
with the young trees of these varieties soon disappear, 
and the perplexed nurseryman stands aghast to see his 
large stock, both of early and late^ on his hands. 

All this proves that the planter should be cautious and 
prudent in his selections, and observant of the laws of 
trade, especially so far as supply and demand usually af- 
fect prices. 

One thing, however, he should not do.**' No hope of 
temporary profit should ever tempt him to plant an in- 
ferior sort if a really more valuable one can be substituted. 

Were we going to plant an orchard, and restricted to 
six varieties, we would select three white and three yellow 
sorts, and these should form our list : 



170 PEACH CULTURE. 



White. Yellow. 

Amsden, Crawford's Early, 

Old Mixon Free, Reeve's Favorite, 

Stump the World. Crawford's Late. 

And if we enlarged it to twelve, they should be these : 
White. Yellow. 

Amsden, Crawford's Early, 

Early York, Yellow Rareripe, 

Moore's Favorite, Reeve's Favorite, 

Old Mixon Free, Crawford's Late. 

Red Rareripe, Smock. 
Stump the World, 
Ward's Late. 

Beyond this we should not seek to go ; but if compelled 
to increase our list to twenty varieties, they would run 
thus: 

White. Yellow. 

AiDsden, Crawford's Ear^', 

Troth's Early, Reeve's Favorite. 

Early York, Yellow Rareripe, 

Grosse Mignonne, Crawford's Late, 

Large Early York, Susquehanna, 

Moore's Favorite, Red Cheek, 

Old Mixon, Sal way. 

Red Rareripe, 
Noblesse, 
Stump tlie World, 
Morris' White, 
Druid Hill, 
Ward's Late. 

Some of these we can recommend from observation and 
experience, as well as from the almost universal testimony 
of planters in all parts of the country. So far as our per- 
sonal knowledge goes, it must be remembered that it is 
confined principally to the Peninsula, where the peach 
reaches its highest perfection, both in size and flavor ; and 
some of those that do well here, may not do so well else- 
where, and vice versa. We would further remark, in 
passing, that in the varieties we have named, there is the 



m 

M 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 171 

greatest difference in merit. The order in whicti they 
are named does not indicate, in any degree, our opinion 
of their relative worth, but rather the order of their 
coming in. 

We give a more or less brief description of the vari- 
eties named, adding a few others. 



WHITE PEACHES. 



Troth's Early. 



We have placed this variety in our largest planting 
list, but we cannot really recommend it at all in respect 
of its quality, for this we consider very inferior. It is 
neither rich nor paUitable ; neither is its size such as to 
make it showy and attractive. But it has several good 
traits, in a marketable point of view, which have enabled 
it, for many years, to maintain itself as a leading variety. 
The most prominent of these was its early maturity. 
Before the introduction of Hale's Early ^ it was the first 
in market. This alone w^as sufficient to commend it to 
planters, for some people will buy the first fruit that 
makes its appearance, of whatever quality, and at what- 
ever price. Besides being early, it has a handsome bright 
red ch^eh^ and this was greatly in its favor. Add to these, 
wonderful productiveness and good carrying qualities, 
and it is not strange that it held its place so long. But 
it lacked two essential merits — size and flavor — and as 



172 PEACH CULTURE. 

soon as an earlier one was discovered, it was vanquished, 
and almost driven from the field. In 1869, it scarcely 
paid the expenses of picking and shipping, and now may 
be regarded as abandoned on the Peninsula, Where 
an earlier variety does not succeed, it may be planted mod- 
erately, in order to supply an early market, provided, al- 
Avays, that there is no other of better quality, and equally 
early, within r^ch. 

Tree a moderate grower, with firm, compact wood, and a 
fan-shaped head; branches numerous, and rather slender; 
very productive. Flowers small. Xe^^^es glandular. Fruit 
small round, or nearly so, red ; flesh white, slightly red 
at the stone ; quality poor. Season, 1st of August. F. 

Early York. 

Earl}' Pui-ple, Serrate Early York. 

Pouri)reo Ilativc, 

An old and well-known variety. Size medium ; form 
roundish oval ; suture slight. Skin thin ; color pale or 
white in the shade, but richly mantled with red in the 
sun. Flesh white, with reddish tinge at the stone, rich, 
juicy, melting, vinous, and sprightly excellent ; ripens 
about the 10th of August. 7ree a moderate grower, but 
of firm, close-grained wood ; round head ; very Httle sub- 
ject to disease. Flowers large. Leaves serrate, without 
glands. A justly poi)ular variety. F. 

Grosse Mignonne. 

Royal Kensinuton, Vineuse de Fromeutin, 

Grimwood's Royal George, Mi^nonue, 

New Royal George, Veloutee de Merlet, 

Large French Mignoune, Vineuse, 

French Mignonne, Pourpree de Normandie, 

Swiss Mignonne, Belle Beaute, 

Purple Avant, Belle Bansse, 

Early Purple Avant, La Royal, 

Early May, Pourpree Hative, 

Early Vineyard, Ronald's Seedling Galande, 

Neil's Early Purple, Royal Sovereign, 

Johnson's Early Purple, Superb Royal. 

8 



DESCRIPTIYE CATALOGUE. 173 

This has been a favorite variety in both France and 
England for more than a century, and has elicited the 
highest praise from these quarters. It has also been very 
popular in some parts of our own country, but is not now 
extensively cultivated on the Peninsula ; but whether this 
is owing to a want of adaptation to our soil or climate, to 
the superiority of other sorts of its season, or to the lack 
of friends to disseminate it, we will not say. Its undoubt- 
ed popularity in some localities, and for a long time, is 
fully attested, not only by the cumulative testimony of 
many witnesses, but by an unusually long list of syno- 
nyms. Of these there are more than twenty. 

In New England, it is a favorite for cultivation under 
glass, and in Georgia, in the orchard. 

Tree medium, or large, hardy, and a regular bearer. 
Fruit large, roundish, somewhat depressed, with hollow 
at the top ; skin, pale, greenish-yellow, mottled with red, 
with a red cheek, sometimes taking a purple tinge. JBlesh 
yellowish-white, red at the stone, melting, juicy, rich, and 
vinous. Stone small and rough. Flowers large. Season^ 
August 10th to 15th. 

Labge Early York. 

Early Rareripe, Livingston's Rareripe, 

Haines' Early Red, New York Rareripe, 

Honest John, Walter's Early. 

This is a very popular peach wherever known, and its 
popularity is well deserved. It comes in immediately 
after the Troth, and by many is regarded as the very best 
of its season. 

Tree large, vigorous, and healthy. Leaves large, with 
globose glands, sometimes obscure. Flower's small. 
Fruit above medium, round, divided into unequal halves 
by a well defined suture ; skin pale, yellowish-white, deli- 
cately dotted with bright red, deepening and thickening 
into a fine blush on the side next the sun. Flesh pale 



174 PEACH CULTURE. 

white, reddening towards the stone, melting, juicy, rich, 
luscious. Season^ middle of August. 

Moore's Favorite. 

This is, in all respects, one of the very best peaches in 
the whole catalogue ; and for the health, vigor, hardhiess, 
and productiveness of the tree, as well as for the size, 
beauty, and richness of the fruit, we know none that ex- 
cels it. It is, by many, supposed to be identical with the 
Old Mixon Free ; and, indeed, it differs very little from 
that old, superb, and far-famed peach ; and the differences 
are so slight, as only to be detected by a connoisseur, and 
not certainly in any case except by comparison of the 
fruit. The trees, in their growth, appearance, and habit, 
are precisely alike, and the fruit, in size and quality, also. 
The only distinctive features that the planters most fa- 
miliar with both varieties have been able to detect, are 
two. Moore's Favorite, on the same soil, in the same 
orchard, ripens tvo or three days be/ore Old Mixon, and 
the fruit, although of the same size, shape, and color, has 
a more delicate^ transparent, and wax-like skin, heighten- 
ing its beauty, and increasing its attractions. Its striking 
resemblance to the Old Mixon, leads us to believe that it 
is either a seedling of that excellent peach, or an acci- 
dental variation in its propagation. 

It is a native of Delaware, and originated with Mr. J. 
y. Moore, of Odessa, whose name it bears. 

Tree hardy, vigorous, fruitful, and a tolerable grower ; 
wood close-grained, and elastic. Leaves globose-glandu- 
lar. Flowers ^wvSW. Fruit large, roundish, slightly oval; 
suture obscure, except at the apex ; color white, mingled 
with pale green, changing into a beautiful clear red as it 
becomes fully exposed to the sun ; skin waxy, and almost 
transparent. Flesh white, red at the stone, rich, excel- 
lent ; Season, August 12th. F. 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 175 

Old Mixon Free. 

Old Mixon Freestone, Old Mixon Clearstone. 

This superb old peach is the delight of all planters 
worthy of the name. It is witliout fault, and blameless. 
Not to admire it when gracefully supporting its enormous 
burden of large, choice, rich, beautiful, melting and lus- 
cious fruit in a bright, hot day in August, would be to 
acknowledge one's self insensible to the charms of nature 
and of grace. No Christian could be so callous. 

The tree is much inclined to spread into numerous long, 
slender, tough, graceftd l)ranches, thus giving it a some- 
what elm-shape ; and these branches hardly ever break, it 
matters not what weight they bear. They are so tough, 
so slender, and so weU proportioned, that they will bend 
like a bow under their rich load of precious fruit, until 
the lower ones rest upon the ground, and thus form sup- 
portino- columns for those above them, when they present 
a most" charming sight— a spectacle worthy the admiration 
of a prince. We never get tired looking at one of these 
noble old trees when thus clothed in its native grace and 
dignity ; it supports the weight of many hundred fine, 
ripe, red-cheeked peaches, which seem to hide their beau- 
tiful blushes in a sheen of waving green. And in driving 
throu<zh the orchard, day after day have we stopped m 
the same spot to view and admire this beautiful and grate- 
ful sight. There it stood, a single column, erect and firm, 
supporting its hundred graceful arches, decked with rich- 
est fruits,ln bright and beautiful colors, shaded and soft- 
ened by the green foliage, forming a hemisphere in out- 
line, with base resting on the earth, and apex pointing to 
the sky. So perfect was the picture, that we never could 
brino- ourselves to pluck a single peach! No, indeed ; 
that^'would have been profanation. It would have spoiled 
the svmmetry of the whole ; and we would as lief have 
soiled a portrait, or marred a statue. Had we had the 



l'i'6 PEACH CULTURE. 

power, we would have bidden it be perennial ! In choos- 
ing our trees "for family use," Old Mixon is always 
named first. In that, there is no discussion of merits, no 
diversity of opinion ; it has the unanimous vote of the 
household, and that vote is never reconsidered. Other 
sorts may take their chanceSj and stand their trials, but 
Old Mixon's position is secure, and beyond competition. 

It is supposed to be a seedling from the Old Mixon 
Cling, which was brought to this country from England 
by Sir Jolm Oldmixon, whose name it bears. It is a very 
hardy, thrifty, long-lived, and productive tree. It does 
well wherever the peach will flourish. Taking into view 
the hardiness, freedom from disease, and productiveness 
of the tree, and the size, beauty, and richness of the fruit, 
it has no superior. 

Leaves with globose glands. Flowers small Fruit 
large, roundish, sometimes sliglitly swollen on one side; 
skin white, with a beautiful deep blush when fully ex- 
posed to the sun. Flesh white, but red at the stone, ten- 
der, rich, sugary and vinous ; excellent. Season^ August 
15th. F. 

Red Rareripe. 

Large Red Rareripe, Earlj' Rareripe. 

This is a very handsome and excellent peach, and highly 
popular wherever cultivated. It is supposed to be a seed- 
ling from the Royal George, but this aiises only from its 
strong resemblance to that variety. The fruit is larger 
and broader than the Early York, and this seems to dis- 
tinguish it from that variety. It is also ten days later. 
It sometimes mildews in uncongenial soil. The leaves are 
without glands. 

Fruit large, globular, broader at the base than top, 
somewhat depressed ; suture broad, and extending to 
both sides ; skin white, mottled with red dots, with a 
rich, red cheek. Flesh white, reddening towards the 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 177 

stone, juicy, rich, melting and high flavored. Season, 
August 25th. 

Noblesse. 

Vanguard, Mellish, Lord Montague. 

In England, this peach has obtained and retained an 
excellent reputation, and this after long years of extensive 
cultivation and trial. In this country, it is scarcely less 
valued, although its cultivation has not been general. As 
a variety suitable for forcing, it stands very high, and 
many trellises and walls are adorned with it. 

Tree hardy and productive. Leaves without glands. 
Fruit large, globose-oblong, slightly pyramidal, termina- 
ting in an acute point ; skin pale green, slightly downy, 
Avith delicate red cheek. Flesh pale green, or milk-white 
to the stone, juicy, melting, luscious, spicy. Season^ last 
of August. 

Stump the World. 

We regard this as one of the very best peaches we 
have ; and, excepting in color, little, if any, inferior to 
Moore's Favorite and Old Mixon, to which it bears a 
strong family likeness. It is fully two weeks later than 
these favorite sorts, which gives additional value as a 
market peach. With us, on the Peninsula, it has not 
been as extensively introduced and cultivated as its merits 
deserve ; but, wherever it has been tried, it has given the 
liveliest satisfaction. Its paleness prevents it from arrest- 
ing the attention of those who are carried away by 
bright, gay colors, and thereby slight modest virtue, in 
their eaorer search for dash and show. But when its real 
worth shall be better known, it will certainly be highly 
appreciated by all lovers of good fruit, and should become 
one of our most valuable market varieties. 

Tree thrifty, vigorous, hardy and productive, but not an 
enormous bearer. Leaves with globose glands. Flowers 



l78 PEACH CULTURE. 

small. Fruit large, oval ; suture shallow ; skin white, 
slight blush in the sun. Flesh white, juicy, rich, sparkling, 
high flavored, excellent. Season^ last of August. F. 

Morris' White. 

Morris' White Rareripe, White Melocoton, 

White Rareripe, Cole's White Melocoton, 

Luscious White Rareripe, Freestone Heath. 

Lady Ann Steward, Morris' White Freestone, 

We wish to premise here, that the Morris' White be- 
longs to a class of peaches entirely distinct from all those 
we have already described. They are called, in general 
terms, white peaches, hut this distinctive character is only 
relatively so, and does not extend throughout ; and the 
reader will have observed that, in all our descriptions of 
the fruit, we attribute to it some degree of redness at the 
sto7ie. Now, the Morris' White belongs to a class entirely 
different in this respect. The flesh of this class lacks this 
interior red tinge, and is a pure white throughout, and 
thus draws a line of distinction as broad, as deep, and as 
well defined as that which separates the white and yellow 
fleshed. In some respects, more so ; for the white peaches 
have white skins, are never red cheeked, and seldom ever 
mottled ; while the deep red blush is alike common to white 
and J qWo^ fleshed peaches. Other distinctive peculiarities 
might be mentioned. White are more subject to craclc 
than either of the other classes. They ripen more together, 
nearly all coming in at one time. They never attain the 
size of either of the others, and they are drier, and less 
subject to rot. 

Hence, Freestone Peaches are properly subdivided into 
Hed, White, and Yellow, according to the color of the 
flesh. 

The Morris'^ White is a native, and very popular. For 
many years it has stood at the head of white peaches, 
and it has, to-day, no admitted superior, although one or 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 179 

two others of its class exceed it in size. The tree is gen- 
erally vigorous and healthy, but not in all soils. It seems 
to thrive best in light, sandy loams, and is admirably 
adapted to the Peninsula. The leaves have reniform 
glands. Floicers small. The fruit is medium, oval ; 
suture shallow; skin slightly downy, greenish-white at 
first, but the green disappears in a creamy white when the 
fruit matures, sometimes taking a slight purple tinge when 
fully exposed to the direct rays of the sun, and often 
specked with small light brown dots. Flesh firm, melt- 
ing, sweet, rich and white to the stone. Season^ 15th of 
September. F. 

Druid Hill. 

This is a late peach, highly commended. The tree is 
said to be very vigorous, thrifty, and productive, with 
stout branches, and large leaves. It was brought into 
notice by Lloyd N. Rogers, Esquire, of Druid Hill, near 
Baltimore, whence it has its name. Leaves with globose 
glands. Flowers small. Fruit large, globular ; stem 
cavity, narrow ; suture slight ; skin pale greenish-white, 
clouded with red on sunny side. Flesh greenish-white, 
but becoming purple towards the stone ; very juicy, and 
melting, with an exceedingly rich vinous flavor ; stone 
long, and somewhat compressed, with numerous furrows. 
Season, September 20th. 

Ward's Late. 

This is a highly valuable variety. Its quality is very 
good, while its season, last of September, is much in its 
favor for market. Still, it has not been very extensively 
cultivated in the great peach-growing district of the Pen- 
insula — perhaps because it has had no special friend to 
introduce and disseminate it. 



180 PEACH CULTURE. 

Tree vigorous, and productive. Leases globose-glandui^ 
lar. Flowers small. Fruit rather large, roundish, inclin- 
ing to oval ; skin white, with a beautiful crimson cheek. 
Flesh white, tinged with red at the stone, rich, juicy, 
melting and high flavored. Season, last of September. 

The foregoing thirteen varieties embrace our list of 
Hed and White peaches, in the order of their season, and 
not of their merit. They are all good ; but were we pre- 
paring a catalogue accoiding to quality, we should ar- 
range them somewhat differently. 

We shall now proceed with our list of Yellow varieties 
in the same order. 

Crawford's Early. 
Crawford's Early Melocoton, Early Crawford. 

This is justly one of the most popular and highly es- 
teemed of all our yellow peaches, and this in no particular 
locality, but everywhere, as far as it is known. It seems 
equally well suited to both northern and southern climes, 
and will thrive in any soil where peaches can be success- 
fully grown. As a market peach, it can hardly be ex- 
celled. Its beautiful bright red color, and large size, never 
fail to sell it at satisfactory prices, and many a planter, at 
the close of the season, when balancing accounts, has con- 
gratulated himself on the large number of baskets of this 
variety he had sent to market, or regretted it was so 
small. 

It originated with William Crawford, Esquire, of Mid- 
dletown, New Jersey. The tree is vigorous, hardy, thrifty 
and productive. It is not an enormous, but a uniform, 
regular bearer, hardly ever missing when any others m the 
same orchard bear. The limbs usually strike out, antler- 
like, from two, three, or four main branches, and do not 
spread, fan-like, as in most of the red and white varieties. 
Leaves with globose glands. Flowers small. F'uit very 
large, oblong, terminal point prominent ; suture slight ; 
8* 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 181 

skin yellow, with a beautiful crimson cheek ; Flesh yellow, 
juicy, rich and melting. Season^ 10th of August. F. 

Reeves' Favorite. 

For size and beauty, there is but one peach in the 
whole catalogue that can excel Reeves' Favorite, as grown 
in Delaware. And to look down a row of young trees 
laden with their precious burden of exquisite fruit, just 
at the point of maturity, is certainly a privilege. It is 
one of Nature's beautiful pictures, filling the mind at 
once with admiration and gratitude, delighting the eye 
by its liveliness, and cheering the heart by its exuberance. 

It was first brought to notice by Mr. Samuel Reeves, of 
Salem, New Jersey. 

The tree is very vigorous, stout, and handsome, but 
only moderately productive — not as good a bearer as the 
Crawfords, nor as shy as the Susquehanna. But the size, 
richness and beauty of the fruit, go far to compensate 
for the smaller quantity ; and, as it always commands the 
highest price, we are not quite sure but that it is as profit- 
able as some others far more productive. 

Leaves with globose glands. Flowers small. Fruit 
very large, globose, inclining to oval ; terminal point dis- 
tinct ; suture well defined ; skin yellow, with a fine red 
cheek. Flesh yellow, red at the stone, rich, juicy, vinous 
and melting. Season^ 15th of August. F. 

i Yellow Rarekipe. 

Large Yellow Rareripe, Marie Antoinette. 

By some, this is regarded as the best flavored of all the 
yellow peaches ; and it is really a very fine variety of its 
class, and a very fine peach. It is of native origin, and 
has only come into notice within the last thirty-five years. 
The tree is thrifty and hardy in our soil, and produces 
fair crops. 



182 PEACH CULTUEE. 

Leaves with globose glands. Flowers small. Fruit 
large, globose ; suture shallow, but extends fully half 
round ; skin deep orange, dotted somewhat with red, and 
shaded off with red streaks. Flesh deep yellow, but red 
at the stone, juicy, melting, rich, vinous. Season^ 20th 
of August. 

Crawford's Late. 

Crawford's Late Melocoton, Crawford's Superb Malaeatune, 

Crawford's Superb. 

This is of the same origin as Crawford's Early, and 
partakes strongly of all the distinguishing characteristics 
of that excellent peach. It is even more popular, if pos- 
sible, than its earlier sister. In size, beauty, and flavor, 
it hus scarcely a superior, and very few rivals. As a first- 
rate market variety, commanding the readiest sale and 
highest prices, it stands in the very front rank, and, like 
its namesake, its fame reaches as far as peach culture is 
known. Were we restricted to a single yellow peach, 
this would be our choice. 

Tree vigorous, stout, thrifty, with antler-shaped branch- 
es. Leaves with globose glands. Floicers small. Fruit 
very large, ovate ; suture shallow, but distinct ; skin yel- 
low, with a fine, deep crimson cheek. Flesh deep yellow, 
red at the stone, juicy, melting, rich and excellent. Sea- 
son^ 25th of August. F. 

Susquehanna. 

Griffitb. 

In size, beauty, and excellence of flavor, the Susque- 
hanna has no equal among yellow peaches, if indeed, 
amongst peaches at all. 

The tree grows very rapidly, soon becomes large and 
handsome, while its dark green, and abundant, foliage 
makes it an attractive feature in an orchard of a hundred 
sorts. The fruit is exceedingly large ; almost as round as 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 183 

a sphere ; fine skinned, with a charming delicate blush 
on the cheek next the sun, and surpassingly rich, vinous, 
sweet and delicious. To be able to pluck one of these 
exquisite peaches, when fully ripe, and eat it under the 
tree, on a hot summer day, is the height of luxury — it is 
luxury itself — and a privilege accorded to few except' 
those whose good fortune it is to be able to refresh them- 
selves in the shade of their own trees, and regale them- 
selves with these luscious peaches at pleasure. 

But it is a very shy bearer, and can never become popu- 
lar with planters whose aim is profit. It has been tried, and 
tried again, and always with the same result. It will not 
pay to cultivate it for market ; for, although commanding 
the very highest price, yet the crop is so light, that plant- 
ers soon become gloomy and desponding. It seems to 
still further illustrate the axiom that, where Nature is 
exceedingly munificent in the quality of her gifts, she is 
correspondingly chary in the quantity. But for garden 
culture, no lover of perfection, of its kind, should fail to 
plant a Susquehanna. 

The tree is a native of Pennsylvania, and originated 
with Mr. Griffith, on the banks of the Susquehanna, near 
Harrisburg. In its native place it is still highly prized. 

F. 

Red Cheek. 

Red Cheek Melocoton, Yellow Melocoton, 

Malagatune, Yellow Malagatune, 

Malaeatune, Red Cheek Melocoton, 
Hogg's Melocoton. 

This has been, and in some quarters, is yet, a great fa- 
vorite, and formerly was a very popular variety in the 
New York and Philadelphia markets, but of late years, 
it has nearly disappeared. The reason we cannot assign. 
Perhaps it would be difficult for any one to do so. Year 
after year we find some favorite fruit — an apple, it may 
be — fading away from view, but no one can tell why. If 



184 PEACH CULTUEE. 

we enquire whether or not it succeeds well, we are told 
it does. If we again ask, " Is it not good ?" we are an- 
swered, " Yes, excellent ;" but that is all the satisfaction we 
receive. Well, it is perhaps to remind us that all things 
here are mutable, and passing away ; old fruits, as well as 
old friends and old families ; old associations and fond old 
memories claim a passing tear. Let us not grudge it, but 
proceed with our task. 

It is an American seedling, and is said to be the parent 
of both the Crawfords. If this be so, it has left a noble 
progeny ; and our regret for the decadence of the parent 
will be much modified and softened in contemplating the 
robust prosperity and unbounded popularity of the 
children. 

Tree thrifty, and vigorous. Leaves with globose glands. 
Flowers small. Fruit large, globose-oval ; terminal point 
distinct ; skin yellow, with red cheek. Flesh deep yellow, 
with red at the stone, juicy, melting and good. 

Smock. 
St. George. 

This peach originated with Mr. Smock, of Middletown, 
New Jersey, whose name it bears. We have put it on 
our largest planting list, not because we value it, or would 
recommend it, but because some of our neighbors and 
friends continue to plant it for market, and would consider 
any extended list incomplete without it. It undoubtedly 
has two or three good market qualities. It is a hardy, 
vigorous tree, succeeding well in almost any soil ; it bears 
regularly, and its crops are enormous. In this last respect 
it is unsurpassed. So great are its loads, that it often 
breaks down under them long before the fruit attains its 
size. The fruit is of medium size, or above it, very firm, 
and bears carriage well ; it comes in very late, usually 
closing the season. For a long time, and until the intro- 
duction of Hale's Early, it bore the inverse relation to 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 185 

late peaches that Troth's Early did to early ones. Troth 
led the column, while Smock brought up the rear. Its 
fate is likely to be the same, for the quality of both is 
very poor ; and as soon as a better peach, of the same 
season, can be found, and we think this will not be long, 
Smock will be put upon the retired list. Its capital 
faults are dull color and poor flavor. 

Leaves with reniform glands. Fruit medium, or large ; 
color dull white. Flesh bright yellow, slightly red at the 
stone, moderately juicy, strong, but of poor flavor. 

This closes our planting list of well tried and approved 
freestone peaches. It might be greatly extended, but if 
our readers have attended to what we have already said 
on the folly of planting too many varieties, ihey will, we 
think, agree with us that it is quite long enough. We 
only wish now to remark further, that where we have 
spoken of our own knowledge, in regard to the foregoing 
varieties, we have added our initial, F. The want of this 
will indicate that what we say is derived from informa- 
tion, but of such a character as to inspire full confidence. 

We shall now proceed to describe two white and two 
yellow Clingstones^ closing the chapter with brief notices 
of one or two new varieties that promise well, but have 
not yet been tested. F. 

Heath Cling. 

Heath, Fine Heath, 

Heath Clingstone, Red Heath. 

Of this noble old clingstone peach we may, without 
exaggeration, and with a slight variation, employ the 
poet's language, and say — 

" None knows it but to love it, 
None names it but to praise." 

It is a seedling, produced from a seed brought from the 
MediteiTanean by Mr. Daniel Heath, of Maryland. It 
does not vary when propagated from the seed. It is al- 



186 PEACH CULTUBE. 

most universally assigned the highest place in all descrip- 
tions of clingstones. It is large, beautiful, and delicious. 
It bears abundantly and constantly. It never withers, 
cracks, specks or rots ; neither disease nor insect assails 
it. It is long-lived, and grows almost without care. The 
ladies love it for its deliciite white skin, exquisite flavor, 
and unequaled preserving properties. They speak of it 
with enthusiasm. 

Tree thrifty, healthy and vigorous. Leaves very 
slightly serrate, with reniform glands. Flowers small. 
Fruit large, or very large, oblong, oval ; terminal pomt 
large and distinct ; suture distinct on one side ; skin 
downy, pale white, mottled with very small light brown 
dots on the cheek exposed to the sun. Flesh very clear, 
and white to the stone, tender, melting, juicy, rich, vi- 
nous, aromatic, delicious, adheres firmly to the stone. Sea- 
son^ October 1st, but will keep several weeks after being 
gathered. It is often preserved whole, in order to retain 
the exquisite flavor of the stone. F. 

Old Mixon Cling. 
Old Mixou Clingstone. 

This is the parent of the Old Mixon Free, and worthy 
to be the mother of such a daughter. It is a noble rival 
of the Heath, and some will find it hard to make a choice 
between them. The leaves have globose glands. Flowers 
small. Fruit large, globose-oval ; suture only defined 
towards the apex ; skin pale white, dotted with i-ed, 
sometimes blushing. Flesh clear white, very melting, 
juicy, rich, luscious, high flavor. Season^ 1st of Sep- 
tember. 

Lemox Cling. 

Lemon Clingstone, Kennedy's Lemon Clingstone 

Largest Lemon, Long Yellow Pineapple, 

Pineapple Clingston Yellow Pineapple. 



DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 18? 

This favorite and admirable peach is at the head of all 
the yellow clings. It is a native of South Carolina, and 
was introduced North by Mr. Kennedy, of New York, 
before the Revolutionary War. The tree is hardy, and 
very productive. Leaves long, with reniform glands. 
Flowers small. Fruit large, oblong, inclining to a py- 
ramidal form at the top ; terminal point large and 
projecting ; skin line yellow, with brown cheek in the 
sun. Flesh firm, yellow, slightly red at the stone, adher- 
ing firmly, with a rich, sprightly, subacid flavor. Season, 
middle of September. 

Tippecanoe. 

Hero of Tippecanoe. 

This is a very large and beautiful yellow cling, origi- 
nating with Mr. George Thomas, of Philadelphia, and 
first brought to the notice of the Pennsylvania Hoi'ticul- 
tural Society in 1840. Leaves with reniform glands ; the 
shoots dark purple, or red. Flowers small. Fruit large, 
almost spherical, slightly compressed ; skin yellow, with 
a beautiful red cheek. Flesh yellow, juicy, and vinous. 
jSeason, September 20th. 



188 PEACH CULTURE. 



CHAPTER XXXI. 



FANCY VARIETIES. 



Van Burex's Golden Dwakf. 



Of all fancy varieties, Van JBuren''s Golden Dwarf is 
the most beautiful as well as the most valuable. We have 
never seen it cultivated, except in pots ; but in this form, 
when laden witli bright, rich and luscious fruit, it is really 
exquisite. It combines beauty and utility in an extraor- 
dinary degree, and alike delights both the palate and 
the eye. The leaves are long, deep-green, and so closely 
set as almost to conceal the branches ; and they are very 
seldom shed until autunm frosts. Were the tree entire- 
ly destitute of fruit, its graceful form and elegant foliage 
would give it a i)lace amongst ornamental shrubs of the 
first class. But Avhen we add to this, its rich clusters of 
full-sized, gold and carmine peaches, coyly showing their 
rosy cheeks, from under their green sheen, redolent with 
nourishment, health and joy, it becomes a pure delight — 
an admiration. We have seen it at the state fairs, and in 
the show windows on Chestnut street, Philadelphia, 
where it always attracted attention, and elicited praise. 
We have looked at it again and again, but never grew 
tired. In horticulture it is a gem. 

A cultivator says, " It seldom attains a growth of more 
than three feet in height, the original being only twenty- 
eight inches when four years old. The buds are so close- 



FANCY VARIETIES. 189 

ly set, that one of these Httle trees, loaded with fruit, 
reminds the beholder of an immense bunch of mammoth 
grapes." The same writer says, " It is prodigiously pro- 
lific, and in quality of fruit has fe\v^ if any superior. " 
Vein J^i(re?i''s Golden is a seedling from the common 
peach which came up in a bed of seedlings raised by Mr. 
*r. Van £uren, of Clarksville, Georgia. 

The Blood Clingstone. 

This is a very peculiar fruit, of large size, but very 
inferior quality. Some admire it because it is odd ; and 
it is sometimes used for pickles and preserves. We do 
not admire it or regard it as either useful or ornamental. 
Odd it certainly is. When viewed on the tree, it some- 
what resembles, in its dark-red color, tlie prematures of 
Buch varieties as the Smock or Crawford. It is appro- 
priately named, for the flesh, when ripe, resembles more the 
bloody flesh of a slaughtered animal, than anything else we 
have ever seen. 

It is said to be an American seedling of the French 
Sanguinole d Chair Adherente, 

Double Blossomed. 

This is a beautiful tree. It blooms with the Double 
Flowering Cherry, and is a most suitable companion of 
the latter. The flowers are of a beautiful rose-color, several 
times as large as those of the common peach. They 
are thickly set and very showy. The fruit is of the 
Clingstone variety. 

It may be dwarfed by budding on the Mirabelle 
Plum stock. 

The fruit is of indifi*erent quality, sparsely set, and of a 
greenish-yellow color, with a red tinge where exposed to 
the sun. 



190 PEACH CULTURE. 

Peen To. 

This is a Chinese variety, and quite singular. It is a 
flat peach, about two inches in diameter. The flesh is 
produced on the sides only, the ends being flattened down 
to the stone. The tree is small, but has a fine foliage, 
which holds till late in the fall. It is a freestone. The fruit 
is of good flavor. The flesh except a small circle around 
the stone is yellow, sweet, juicy and spicy. It ripens 
from the middle of August to the 10th of September. 

Chinese Crooked Peach. 

We name it thus for want of a better, and as indicative 
of its shape, which is long and crooked. The seed was 
brought from China, some eight or ten years ago, by a 
gentleman of Philadel})hia, who owns several plantations 
on the Peninsula. He gave it to some professional nur- 
serymen of that city for propagation. They succeeded in 
rearing some trees, which the gentleman had planted on 
his own lands. In 18G0, the trees bore acroj); of this 
the gentleman says : " The trees are eight or nine years 
old, and this summer bore freely. The peaches are re- 
markable for their great sweetness. After falling upon 
the ground, they remained several weeks undecayed ; but 
they were too small, and too odd in their appearance to 
be marketable, and must be mainly regarded as a curi- 
osity. They do well under glass, and, kept as dw^arf trees, 
are very ornamental." 

Reid's Weeping Peach. 

This was originated by Mr. William Reid of Murray Hill 
nurseries, Elizabeth, N. J. It is a very peculiar variety 
with weeping branches, and a habit much like that of the 
weeping ash. It shows to great advantage when budded 
on a peach or plum stock about six foet from the ground. 
In doing this, a straight clear stock should be selected. 



GENERAL INDEX. 



Amygdalus Cochinchinensie 12 

" communis H 

" " var. liBvis... 11 

'* Duna 12 

" orientalis. 12 

" Persica 11 

Baskets and Crates ". 87 

"■ Beecher 88 

" Chip :::: s? 

Number needed 89 

" Size of ]][[ 87 

" Stave '[[\ 87 

Bass Matting * ' ' 50 

Blossoms, Size of !.!..! 158 

Boats ! . ! ! ! 101 

Buds ; ; " ; .■44_5o 

'• Cultivation of 56 

" Expressed ],[ 48 

" Leaf and Fruit ! . . 46 

" Rubbing off .' ' .' 59 

Budders 49 

Budding '.'.'.".'.'. 48 

Budding described 51 

Budding-knife 51 

California, Peaches in * '. . 26 

Catalogue of Varieties 167 

Clingstones i59^185 

Coming in 84 

Consignees 94 

Coulter's, Thomas, Method of ciil- 

ture.. 25 

Crates 90 

Cullers ...... 106 

Culture after a Crop ...!!! 114 

Cutting back the Stocks 58 

Cutting the Ties 56 

Delaware Peninsular, Peaches in.! 16 

Descriptive Catalogue 167 

Drains '"igO 

Empties I09 

Espalier ' " 138 

Facing '.'.'.'.'.'.101 

Freestones I57 

Glands . . ! 158 

Guano in the Nursery 44 

Heeling-in ... 67 

Illinois, Peaches in 21 

Insects and Diseases ] 120 

" ^geria exitiosa 120 

" The Borer 120 

" Curculio 125 

" Rhynchcenus Nenuphar,... 125 

Indiana, Peaches m 21 

Introduction 9 

Kansas, Peaches m *.. 22 

Kentucky, Peaches in 21 

Ladders ' ' " " 99 

Logan's. Thomas, Orchard.!!!!.... 69 

Manure in the Nursery 60 

Markers. 38 

Markets ..!!!!!! Ill 

Marking !!!!!!!! 54 

Michigan. Peaches m ..!.!!!!!!, " 20 

Missouri. Peaches in 22 

Natural Fruit * "30 

Nectarine 12 

New England. Peaches iii ! ! 24 

New Jersey, Peaches in.. . . ig 



Nursery Cultivation , , 43 

Cutting Back in the 58 

" Preparation of Ground for 37 

" Pruning in the 61 

" Tillage in the 60 

Site of !" 29 

Nursery Rows, Direction of 5;^ 

" " Marking of 54 

Nursery Trees, Heeling-in 67 

" Packing 65 

" " Rubbing off Leaves 63 

" " Taking up 02 

Ohio, Peaches in 19 

Orchard, Broken Limbs in ! 115 

" Cropping an 79 

" Cultivation of 78 

" Cutting-in 82 

" Fertilizers for I17 

" First Trimming of 78 

" Height of Head in 81 

" Hogs in the 114 

" Near Water 69 

" Planting an 72 

" Plowing in the 83 

" Second Trimming of 80 

" Selecting a Site for 68 

" Shape of 71 

" Soil for 70 

" Time to Plant an 77 

Orders, how filled. 63 

Packing Trees 65 

Peach, Botanical History of the... 11 

Peach Brandy 119 

" in China 15 

" in England ! 15 

Peach Culture in France ! 15 

in the United States 16 

Peach-growing Regions 16 

Peach-House ! ! ! 146 

Peach, Uses of the ! ! ! ! ! 118 

Peach Wagon, ! ! ! ! ! 107 

Peach Tree, Duration of ! ! ! ! ! 13 

" " Native Country of 14 

Peaches, Color of 159 

" in Pots... !!.!!!l52 

Peninsula Fruit Growers' Associa- 
tion 98 

Picking 102 

" Number of hands required for. 104 

Pot Culture 152 

Prematures ! ! ! 103 

Preparation of Ground for Nursery 37 

Profit 112 

Pruning at Planting ! . ! ! 76 

Quilling 53 

Returns 108 

Ripeness, how told ! ! ! ! 105 

Seed 31 

Seed-bed ! 36 

Seed, Characters of good 33 

••' Planting. 40 

Shippers lOO 

Slipping the Bud .53 

Slakes for Marking 54 

Stripper !./.. 51 

Special Culture 138 

Taking up and sending to Market. . 62 
Tyer ^ 51 

191 



192 



IKDEX. 



Tics 50 

Training, Espalier 138 

Fan Shape 144 

Transportation 92 

Troe-digging Plow 64 

Twigs 47 

Tying 52 

Uses of the Peach 118 

Varieties 153 

" Classification of 158 

" Form of Trees in 159 



Varieties for New York Market. . . . 155 
" Popularity of Different. . .160 

New 154 

Virginia, Peaches in 18-23 

Wagons 107 

White Peaches 159-171 

Yellow Peaches 159-180 

Yellows 132 

" Cause of 133 

" Remedies for 135 

" Symptoms of 135 



INDEX TO VARIETIES. (Synonyms in /i5a/ic«.) 



Amsden-Alexander 164 

Belle Bamse 1"2 

BelU BeanU 172 

Blood Clingstone 189 

Chinese Crooked 190 

Chinese Flat 190 

Cole's Wiite Melocoton 178 

Crawford's Early 180 

Crawford's Early Melocoton 180 

Crawiford's Late. 182 

Crawford's Late Melocoton 182 

Craviford-8 Superb 182 

Craivford's Superb Malacatune 182 

Double Blossomed 189 

Druid Hill 179 

Early Crawford 180 

Early Louise 165 

Early May 1~2 

Early Purple 172 

Early Purple Avant 172 

Early Rareripe 173-176 

Early Kivers 165 

Early Vineyard 172 

Early York 172 

Fine Heath 185 

Foster 165 

Freestone Heath 178 

Greenwood's Royal George 172 

Giiffith 182 

Grosse Mignonnc 172 

Haines' Early Red 173 

Heath 185 

Iloath Cling 185 

Heath Clingstone 185 

HtrTO of Tippecanoe 187 

Hogg's Melocoton 183 

Honest John 173 

Johnson's Early Purple 172 

Kennedy''s Lemon Clingstone 186 

Lady Ann Steward 178 

Large Early York 173 

Large French Mignonne 172 

Large Red Rareripe 176 

Largest Lemon 186 

Large Yellow Rareripe 181 

La Royal 172 

Lemon Cling. . . 186 

Lemon Clingstone 186 

Livingston Rareripe 173 

Long ' Yellow Pineapple 180 

Lord Montague 177 

Lord Palmerston 165 

Luscious White Rareripe 178 



Malacatune 183 

Malagatune 183 

Marie Antoinette 181 

MeUish 177 

Mignonne 172 

Moore's Favorite 174 

Morris' White 178 

Morris' White Freestone 178 

Mortis' White Rareripe 178 

Mountain Rose ..165 

Neil's Early Puiple 172 

New Royai George 172 

New York Rareripe 173 

Noblesse 177 

Old Mixon Clearstone 175 

Old Mixon Cling 186 

Old Mixon Clingstone 175-186 

Old Mixon Free 175 

Peen To 190 

Pineapple Clingstone 186 

Piquet's Late 166 

Princess of Wales 166 

Purple Avant 172 

Red Cheek 183 

Red Cheek Melocoton 183 

Red Heath 185 

Red Rareripe 176 

Reeves' Favorite 181 

Reid's Weeping 190 

Ronald's Seedling Oalande 172 

St George 184 

Serrate Early York 172 

Smock 184 

Snow 166 

Steadly 166 

Stump the World 177 

Superb Royal 172 

Susquehanna 182 

Swiss Mignonne 172 

Tippecanoe 187 

Troth's Early 171 

Van Buren's Golden Dwarf 188 

Vanguard 177 

Veloutte de Merlet 172 

Vineuse 172 

Vineuse de Fromentin 172 

Walter's Early 173 

Ward's Late 179 

'White Melocoton 178 

Yellow Melocoton 183 

Yellow Rareripe 181 

Yellow Pineapjyle 186 

Waterloo 166 



